LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



p5 fa & 



Shelf. 



;lf. 



Z15 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



i 



rm 



1 



TUB GMEAT 

REBELLION, 

art/ 

REMIITISCEITCES 

OF THE 
STRUGGLE THAT COST 

A MILLION LIVES. 

A DRAMA 

IN FIVE ACTS. 






. 



$2 4. fytbmt ijtod. 
NEW TOSKf 

1881. 






'<£* 



.1* 



Copyright, 188U by the Author 



I 



) 




of the 
GREAT REBELLION 

INTRODUCTION. 



Scene m a Sangamon forest Lincoln with axe, 
maul and wedge, splitting rails. 

Lin. Ojcb of the sweetest fruits of labor is 
An honest living. I'd rather have 
A homely crust, well earned r to nibble, washed 
Willi a beverage of pure conscience down ; 
It's more refreshing, in my simple judgment, 
Th;m the fruits of golden India, to the palate 
Of the gouty millionaire who financiers regardles? 
Of \vt\ys and means of getting, save t'mswre 
Tin* gotten. He's not a pauper who eats 
This crust with? relish; paupers are not the workers. 
But he's the bone* and sinew of the land; 
FTf. on whom depends our boasted Yankee 
Nation, for all her great developments. [ Works. 
Enter Joe, the Hunter, at a distance. 



8 INTRODUCTION. 

Joe. [Scanning.] Wal, I'd jest like ter know 
what on airth that raought be ! My own mother 
alius teached me as how I was the ogliest creetur 
liviu'; an' somehow I've got terhatin' beauty, ogli- 
ness too; besides, my father has often 'jined it on 
me to shoot the fust man I ever see humlier'n me ; 
and I tuk a vow one day when Sal Simmins gin 
me a ticket of everlastin' leave jest kase I warnt 
good lookin' I tuk a vow I'd do it; an' I would long 
ago but I'd made up my mind the human race was 
putty safe for all my bullets; [laughing] for hunt 
the wide world over, I haint got no comparison. 
I've kep' this ere old glass these ten year, 'an never 
looked in it on'y when I thought I seed critturs 
that 'ud stan' some fag along side uv my reflexion; 
but gosh ! I've got an equal here. T'aint human tho'. 
Whew! My word's good. Yen thing's hurnblier'n 
me ; I bleve I'll shoot. Hit's suthin' whether base, di- 
vine or middlin*. Base things is evil sperits, or dev- 
ils; an' ef thatar' proves one on 'em, I sartain shant 
do any harm to rid the world on 'im; at least I'll 
make the ventur. Divine things is heavenly! That 
is, I spose they alius behave tharselves. They nev- 
er drink whiskey, never swar, nor steal rats, nor 
minks, nor any other varmints out uv each other's 
traps. They live in a place they call Paradise, 'an 
its mighty oncommon thar visits on the airth, for 
they cant take no plunder back, an' mere visitin' ! 
T'aint very likely they'r a goin' to the trouble ter 
visit us mortals. At least, I never had any on 'em 
come ter see me. They aint made uv blood and 
bones like us. They're sperits; that is, they're blad- 
ders like, stuffed with this yer hygroggin gas, and 
painted up to look like somebody. But Vm an i- 
dee ef that ar's one on 'em. the artix what painted 
'im must uv had a right smart uv a rangertang fur a 



J.YTHODUCTIOX 

mocjel tep daub arter.. If, its, one uv that kind uv on- 
v 6%a ted varmints, an' I should slide a.decider'in.'irn 
"from 'my old wolf slaye'jf here an'' it should plunk a 
T l)0 : le thr'ongh his hide, the gas 'ud 'scape, he'd wilt 
"Bp Vanish in a iwirlklin' uv a, cat's eve at a bull dog. 
rv Phfen thar-'s thie'middlin' kind uv thing that's human. 
< a' fF 1*11 confess I'd rather blow a ball at any oneuv 
l H)ie Other above" rrien'tipned critters., I say I feel. 
-;i leetld Squeamish aooSjt this tiling 1 ; howsomever 
y>IInhtin^ Joe's not the man to break his promise. 
*f'li„s'hoQt,'.hit or miss. [Aiw4 and sriqjj's.]' 
3n Tax. [Startled, approaches Joe.]' '" Hello, old fellow. 
•^|elM ! $6ti1' What game is' that you're sighting'? 
''It seenis to me your piece is pointing too.. ■'•"/ . , 
^Bii'ectly'" on a line 'with me for safety', 
V B --jf&ft [Aside.] Wal thai;! I'm a little Vharned uv 
'this, .already. : llelld ? ,' Longspliee, another jiffjraii' 
'Vcl a "been a dish for worms! 'V 
~ : -'L'iN. How's that? ' 
J- : Hux. How's that! . V 

I:'". Lin. ';' Do you take me for ganie T ; [■.'"".' '."■* 
'; 'I'^uS'' ", Yes, rriy game I've been this ten 'year hunt- 
*M fur the like uv ye. My'ole dad long senee made 
"nrei 1 swar : I'd shoot the fust man I found oglier 
iookin' than me ; an' at last I bleve I've found 'im. 
''■' [Scanning his glass,] 

1 "Lin. Well, if I'm any uglier than you arc 
'blaze away. 

13tjn. Would yer be willin' to call it a tie? 
• Lin. I'm willing to call it a tie if it will turn 
your notion, or stay bloodshed; not that I feel my- 
self particularly worthy of a longer lease of life, but 
really, I do not think my offense merits capital 
punishment. My dear Sir, you have allowed an 
i lea to deprave you; and the sentiment taught you 
i ] .j^your father had well nigh worked your ruin. 



10 INTRODUCTION. 

We have other things to live for. Give me 

Your hand my friend, and vow a contra-vow : 

That you will never let this whim of beauty 

And its counterpart control your passions. 

Let me convince you. What is beauty? 

I own my gaunt, long legs and bOny frame 

And fingers, do not suit the silly whims 

Of those Heaven graceful finishes" in contour, 

With form and feature faultless, with symmetn 

In buoyant youth as perfect as the fawn. 

A little time, a bruise, cut, cancer, or 

A stroke of small pox, scar, or anything 

May ruin all this beauty. The great 

Creator who in wisdom made us all, 

Has doubtless made all perfect. 'Tis not for 

Outward loveliness that we are valued. 

A deed of kindness of the tongue, or hand, 

May change the ugliest shape and features too, 

Such as before were seen but to repel; 

And cause a shrug of withering disgust 

To startle splfeny natures, to forms superb. 

'Tis by acts we're valued, by those possessed 

Of sense sufficient to be worth a notice. 

Who can esteem the j-udg n -»nt of a man 

Who sets dumb visions and blind imagery 

Against the sober, though battered and time 

Worn walls of solid worth? 

Hun. Wal, now, who'd a thought I was shoot- 
in' a man what could convince me out uv an idee I 
was well nigh born with? I say feller woodsman, 
sence I've got older, I've often cogertated on the 
same sort uv theery you're a preachin'; an' ef yer 
call little Childers folks, an' I've got ter thinkin' ole 
folks is more onsensible'n they; ef yer call 'em folks 
I say, I'll go halves with yer an' indorse yer idees; 
fur I've lived long enough to know that this here 



INTRODUCTION. 11 

kentry's full uv wild cats an' more on em's got two 
legs than four; but I've tuk a right smart uv a liken' 
to you, 'cause yer seem to have the sensible sim- 
plicity uv a baby. 

Lin. Why what do you mean by that ? 

Hun. What do I mean V I mean they're more 
goodnatered, like, eh! Hit's mighty few uv these 
'eregrowdupers as know thar's sich a critter livin' a? 
huntin' Joe^cept to make mouths at. But y'd or. 
ter see the difference when I happen by Jack Far- 
lan's clearin'. Hit sometimes actilly makes my oU 
eyes swim seem' the little fellers go fur me; an' ef } 
poke along, they'll call me back, like, an' climb m* 
like 'possoms an' git me ter tell yams. I haint got 
the spunk in me to refuse, like I would if they 
was bigger. Many's the comfortable time I've had 
a laughin' an' yarn spinin' with some urchin on my 
knee, ef I do say it; an' seein' yer so good natered, 
I acknowledge it ter you. 

Lin. I see you have a good heart, and I for 
one, cannot see your ugliness as plainly as you do. 
Where do you live, Joe ? 

Hun. Me? wal, I'm a sort, uv a transient chap; I 
dont live anywheres. I'm stoppin' though, herea- 
bouts this many a year; but game's gittin' skace an' 
I'm goin' down inter ole Ken tuck, whar I kin find 
varmints thicker at the foot uv the Varginy moun- 
tains. Good bye boy, you've larnt me a lesson el 
I am the oldest. You're the last two legged game 
without feathers I shall ever snap at, 'less 'tis a 
traitor. Here's my elinchin' bones. Yer think I'd 
a shot yer? Wal I would at fust, but "fore I got 
done aimin', the ole kill devil wus mor'n four foot 
wide yer carcass. 'Souse this brine, I'm on'y 
sWeatin'. [Going, wiping his eyes] 

1)in: Hold'! What'* your hurry ? 



12 INTRODUCTION. 

Come, you're tired, hungry. Enjoy with me 
This frugal meal, my friend and let us bury 
Strangeness and be friends. I'm from Kentucky. 

Hun. Are ye ? Wal, yer paw on that. I'm ofl* 
Take care yerself boy. [Going.] Hey thar! I for- 
got. What's yer name? 

Lin. Abram Lincoln. 

Hun. Abraham Lincoln ! That's a philoserphy 
name, an' he's a philoserphy chap, that, kind uv 
winnin' like. I had hard scratchin' to break away 
from 'im. I haint the feller to eat his grub arter 
I'd been plunkin' a hole through 'im. That 'ud bfe 
heathenish. Ef ever he gits inter a scrape, an' I 
hear on't, yer'll see me stick up for 'im like a she 
bear. He's got a soul in 'im that's bigger'n a pung- 
kin. {Exit Joe.] 

Lin. Simple scen< j ! 

We have unearthed a diamond ! The sensitive, 
Rough man possess'd a heart too keen and soft 
For undevelop'd reason. 'Tis too hard ! 
The mind is sometimes held in check and stayed 
A lifetime from its proper course; forbidden 
To expand and use its latent forces 
In conqu'ring the will, 'gainst which it knowingly 
Contends. How can the mind without a teacher 
E^say to rule the heart? 'Twas born within 
Us ; tender and sensitive, with attributes, 
branches, from which emotions spring ; subject 
To being moulded by this mind. When in 
The school of life, branches of bad intent 
Are lopp'd and those of good develop'd. 'Tis thus 
An infant in its mother's guiding rule 
Eirst feels, as 'tivere the sunshine purity 
Of a stronger, directly on the heart ; 
Grafting the scions ih't that afterwards 
l^rnduce delicious friiitasre and divine. 



IXTRODUCTIOX. IS 

Mind, too new t' admit the rays of reason, 

Remains uninfluenced and undevelop'd. 

Reason was not born — only the instrument 

On which it plays — and like the varying cadence 

Of the violin, its tones are wild, 

Discordant, sublimely sweet, depending 

On the manner of the execution; 

And like the viol, the more 'tis exercised 

The more neglected, the finer or the 

Harsher are its strains. "lis first another 

Who plays upon this instrument; and then 

The opening life of its possessor; 

And I do feel like pitying the man 

Whose heart is taught in error; whose reason 

Unsophisticated, mocks, punctures, stabs 

The bleeding weeping heart. 

[ Works. 
'Twas a droll remark I made ; '"Our spotless 
Yankee Nation," Well, yes; unstained she seems 
And yet, like nebulae upon the sun 
She has her spots — unfit comparison — 
A coalbed — peatbog better illustrate: 
Years long elapsed, some loose adventurer 
Thinking to profit by the circumstance, 
Placed burning fagots in a gaping crevice 
Of the bed, which roared and flamed uriquench'd. 
Perhaps the mineral seeker reaped a good profit 
By this artifice; but going, failed to stanch 
The hissing element that now, like crawling 
Serpent, his length insinuating, descends 
Deep into grottoes of the mountain, fed 
From invisible aliment, establishing 
Itself within its sultry den, defies 
The feeble energies of man unhelp'd, 
To check it. Lapping and smudginir, now 
Almrst assuaged for want of its supporter. 



14 JXTRODUCTIOX. 

T'S fires for months are thought extinguished. 
Anon, some overhanging, carbonaceous 
Column, or cliff, its crystals disintegrated, 
Tumbles. Afresh the flames are lighted; and 
The monster's hideous heats and thunders dull 
Produce a shock that's felt for many a mile; 
And men are frightened at the phenomenon, 
Perceiving that vegetation sickens; 
And e'en the little birds and quadrupeds 
And all that make existence cheerful, die 
Or withdraw their company and leave a 
Sullen and vindictive desolation! 
For never shall thofe flames be quenched until 
Th' alarmed people, into th' issuing 
Crater, or ruptured culmination, with 
Engines huge, shall turn a river; force an 
Inundation ; soak the very tissues 
Shallow and deep, centre and margin through. 

This illustrates 
The sin that stains my country — the wretched 
Taint of slavery. The men who introduced 
And cherished its infant growth have vanish'd. 
Through the propensity of man to sneer 
At labor, the service of poor, unpaid, 
Degraded slaves, was forced, to till the plump, 
Alluvial acres of our southern realm; 
First in small parcels, till the fatten'd lords, 
Proud and haughty, despising manual toil, 
Began to cast about for means to stock 
More plentifully, with these poor bondsmen, 
Their increasing tillage. The slave trade not 
Yielding the supply, recourse was had to 
Breeding. 'Twas thus the loathesome pestilence 
Of slavery inhumanly began its 
Ghastly inculcations ; and the desire 
J n all of Africls race for freer lives 



INTRODUCTION. 13 

And culture, make- the freedom of free men, 
Free conversation, free, frank, ingenuousness, 
Free, loving confidence, free schools, free work, 
Yes, all that marks enlightened happiness, 
With them, most incompatible ! Where'er 
The lurking wrong, you'll find a dagger to 
Defend it. Whate'er that wrong, 'tis hidden. 
Thus habit shields the crime ; for s-laveci aft 's clutch'd 
By th' autocrat whose cla^s law power, on his 
Plantation, reigns supreme. He pompous grows. 
And insolent; and like a tyrant, gluts 
His own passions in licensed lust and blocd ; 
And men of other countries and other 
Views, when passing Lis domain, must warn the 
Tempted tongue. Oh. my dear country! When will 
The crater open that floods may enter 
And annihilate thy wrongs? Could I, by 
Adding knowledge and poii.>h to my small 
Accomplishments, do arglit 1o mitigate, 
Or stay the deadly doom which I perceive 
Foreshadowed in this curse: stop th' impending 
Tempest; reconcile the lurking spirit 
Of hate, swift widening 'twixt North and South— 
Could I contribute t' avert the mischief, 
I'd sacrifice my time, my pains, my life, 

In such a goodly business. 



THE GREAT REBELLION. 

DRAJ\{ATIS PERSONS. 

Lincoln, the Rail-splitter; afterwards President 

Seward, Secretary to Lincoln. 

Joe, a hunter ; lost brother to Florence, 

John Brown, a raider and martyr. 

Cop, a rebel sympathizer. 

Davis, President of the Confederacy. 

Stevens, Vice President of Confederacy. 

Beauregard, | Generals ° f Confederate armies. 

Breckinridge, 

Wigfall, 



r Secretaries to Davis. 

J OOMBS 

Floyd, 

Slidell ( Envoys plenipotentiary 

Mead, •, 

Reynolds, 1 Generals in the Union armies. 

Custer, ) 

Taylor, a Union colonel. 

Quashy, negro carpenter; afterwards a runa'^nv. 

Winder, \ 

Turner, V keepers of Confederate prisons. 

WlRTZ, ' 

BoBj a Union volunteer. 
Harmon, a rebel sympathizer. 
Bill, a rummy and office holder. 

Mary, wife to Lincoln. 

Adelina, Wife to Seward. 

Florence, nurse and espion ; sister to Joe. 

Mrs. Davis, wife to the dictator. 

Soldiers, Surgeons, Pickets, Sharp-shooters, Hang- 
man, Messengers, Masters, Slaves, Citizens, a Slier* 
iff, Civilians, a Sergeant and attendants. 



THE GREAT REBELLION. 



ACT I. 

Scene I. A Street in Harper's Ferry, 
Enter Citizens in twifusion. 

First Crr. Hello! What's the excitement? 

Second Cit. Excitement ! You're slow at news. 
The town has been attacked by robbers ! 

First Cit. By robbers I Impossible, I'm amazed ! 
Say, neighbor, what's your hurry? You've 
But one life to live. If that's the way you 
Live it though, you'll find it short. 

Sec, Cit. Don't hinder me. The length of my 
life depends upon the activity of my legs. Hin- 
der me not, I say. D'ye think I'm going to tarry 
\t\ this hornet's nest while the yaller jackets aret 1 
making -such free use of their gaffs ? 

First Cit. What's up ? 

Third Cit, Enough. The town is overrun with 
abolitionists. There's niore'n a thousand. They're* 
running off the niggers by the dozen. TheyVe got! 
a reg'lar gineral; a savage abolitionist big enough 
til eat any two common sized niggers at a meaL 
They've driven the soldiers out of the town*, and 
the people are leaving in great haste for safety^ I 
expect we'll all be killed. [Meii. 

F>rst Cit. This must be all excitement. Til 
look to't. 



18 THE GREAT 

It is the wild »st folly to suppose 

That men^o/;il'4 organize, with leaders, and 

March hi arnlies to emancipate the. slaves 

Directly ; against the 7 Oon^ti^utLpn^ 

Of the .g<^jernm'*nt, an4;S,tatntes of the 

States. I owns thai slavery, as con ducted,. 

(A.nd 'tis a goading cviujie; ,'gainst. Grod ancl man) 

Has, byiits.e^crpiichi^ei^^.wrou^ii jealousies 

And di& trusts* amongst the people,, io such 

Harsh degree that lawyers;, statesmen, solid 

Farmers and; men of traffic unite in 

Grave discussion, dispensijig fheorijes,, 

While; others clamor 'yvith unrestraip'a 

Vehemenc^ithe Justice ;or, injustice'"" 

Of the cause. I^U scan this raid. ' ^Etieunt orriiies. 

Scene II. Ideri.- 3 ' A fotidside by the river. 

Eiter ^wt> Slaves..: . ;;'•- 
K ¥tfW ; 8laW- Say; Sambo v -git behine dis.yer 
woodpile, I's afeer'd! 

Semnd Slave: n Wot y o 'feer' d 'boot,, Quash ? 
D'ye 'strust dfe'-gobd Lawd ? 7 I's fulL o& jubilation ? 
, &nter°_ \$eberdl' : Slavesw /■'."-■, 

Tfiird Slave. De Lor' Ipe, ] praised T ytte 'lishun- 
ists is come. . J)g LorV be praisetf. We/know dar'd 
come Anuder v A£ >ses fur tb lead us out o 1 bondage 
into de 1 land ob C ihaan, jes like' de IsriliCes was. 

First Slave; t ) Stop dat s'hbutin' -dar, riig<*ah . Be 
quiet, yii'll' git^)un' bViti :f Grbrry ! If ole'Mars come, 
'long h'yer he'll warhi ykr ble black hide wif suffin' 
Wils'n de ' kintessence' bb kyan ^eppen Don' yeu 
try dat hollenn' oh agih':- : >n& ; v: ' 

Fo'irth Slave^ G-emlem, Ts ob de same 'pinyio 
Wi' tfamboj but ■ shorely, de good Moses is come 
wif a whole army.' I seed 'im wan 'ee cum dis yer 
bressed morninV 'Ee wont hab to take us dis time 
cross de Red Sea; on'y but jes de 'Tomac; an' dar 



REBELLION. 19 

we kin git 'board ob'^e'uti^t^cfe^-f/raflr^ad.' an' 
migrate wid de welocity obde telegraph 'wires an' 
wid our darlin' cliillun ,i wid 1 ii^ ) we''lP^O-^ieiri;' ober 
de prospect *b^SK ~'>Q^t^ in ^flab^S9c^^/^ifei^*4^^^<^V4^A*3HQa de 

land^ p|> Egyp'. -, "' : ': / '-^'- 1 }''- ''■ [\ :[ 7, ' ! '■ 

Fifti Slave. Fse biti eatlatin* on 'dfe'eire^ dfe good 
wile. iDle mars but - st'ick''an ■ f ft% an 1 -a'^tfo'gtYebery 
body else ^c^t^ns^M^^sJ^e^^KelS^ bea, I tinks 
we'll be B^'£o ! Mff^lt^U^I3^'(^46db^3^i^ Hej 
hea, hea. ^J[ f™ c *&&* \q3gtifrfm a? 

I heard de tjnimpet s^^ 
I heard de mnro^^tinmn^ oh' dat great day. 
^All, , 'Tk r de haMd ob de ; I^wdls/o' , ei t -'4is 
Though clouds do u rise ; before u^; 
/»< To Oa»aan,iHe!ll i=ne^pre ps , 
An' we'll soun^dejubijeie,, nv, ,\. 
Jfiffi--SLX*ed :®ur/bonJg s|ia|J sojOj^ ,be broken, 

broken, broken, I :>. .: v ■{ '... ;:V',.','. 

Our ! , bonds: wiB 'nil be J>roken/,/on <|atj^ad .' jjjay 
i&iteLo When I &is ?pJt>or,y do.w.pj-tf^lep, na^pn ; 

Ob Africa^ mlatiop, ,, • /' 
: ,: f Wi' $e free shall takederfe station, 
;, j^eii We'll souti* de'lub'ilee'; 1 ;-- -' u 

M*s. Wqw^ n?^w s here, r you t ^rej, you cppfound- 
#$ paGkl I Jbdugb^yjau kad run off. with; that ? ih- 
fernal ab^hftnlHr-rO^Srrj J rf^An^^ . , .l^fhfit • ar<e you 
maki'ng a41 thi4 p^fof -about?,, ., {r['"j .,'[ [ r \ r ,J'. '] 
» -jfikst SLAV:KvY-|)ji, ; good^Tiaf:s, we's ter'^ fright- 
ened at de robbers; ah' M i berating *boni-r- / : 
i-.!'M'As; I'll deliberate you,j^>n swarthy frptft from 
bMlamt Go homeand go to, W|Ork ! Tiie- vandals 
are; arrested and shall hang. , Take t^at, and that r 
and that, and, that for disobedience. Now hustle. 
or by Heavens I I'll have you all hanged — every 
black effigy of Satan. [Exeunt omnes. 



20 THE GREAT 

Scene III. A cell in a prison. 
Enter Keeper, with keys. 

Keep. 'Tis strange that such brusque things 
should come to pass. 
The man looks fine, of noble bearing; grac'd, 
So far as one should fathom, with pungent sense. < 
A man endow'd with lordly bearing; power 
Of wielding sway ; or girding great actions; the 
Energy possessing, of a lion, [Knocking outside. 
The meekness of a. lamb. Ho, who comes there,? 

Visitor. Is this the place where John Brown's 
imprisoned? 

Keep. Yes, stand back ; none can enter. I'm under 
Special orders from the Governor to 
Admit no man. 

Vis. I pray you, hear my plea. He is a friend ; 
An old acquaintance ; besides ; I have these 
Certificates and notes of introduction 
From gentlemen of bearing in the realm; 
Proof of my loyalty and safe intent. 

Keep. [Reads.] Well, come in ; 

Enter Visitor, 
But clip it ; \make short the. colloquy. A 
Bench Sir. Ill g© bring him. How sound reports? 
How. look the people on this high treason ? 
Do they sanction it? 

Vis. Far from it. Excitement foams too high for 
Solid judgment. But if from both idle and 
Candid converse of the million we take 
Parts, weigh them, analyze the compound or their 
Bulk compare, we'll have more sympathy than 
Anger; more thought than pugnacity; more 
Feeling than vindictiveness. Indisposed 
To quarrel, yet ready for the onset, 
We're a' tiptoe, sir; in mazy quivers. 



"The world's agog— in hesitancy T tw"ixt *?w"o 
Decisions. Not that there lies iHke ®$ffi&M 
Mob no coefficient of eank'r ing hate 
And scowling jealousy. Our sin has w&sfcl 
National and become common. (The slave 
Growl, go where you may, is cottfrted with this 
-John Brown negro raid; and some proclaim hfe 
Treason as the sure harbinger of war. 
The South's exasperated at the North's 
Encroachments, the North's exasperated 
A r t the South's encroachments! (arood men tremble 
Lest words turn to blows. 

Enter John Brown from his cell, 'led by keeper. 

J. B. Ho, good comrade, how art thou ? I'm glad 
"Thou'st come. Take my letters and accoutrements 
fin charge ; and I do commission thee 
•&s well, to bear my blessing to my household. 

Wis. Ah, my old friend ; your 'words ring o- 
minous. 
I cannot realize- — 

J. B. Stop. Thy sighs are useless and imCartfed 
for. -\\ExU Keeph*. 

, Rhed not a tear for me; for if I can afford 
•To lose myself, thou canst afford to lose me. 
The lawful penalty of my offense 
ll-s death. 'Tis frivolous whining to condoK 
■fi)r grieve. The tyrant, to perpetuate 
'His devil work, compounds iniquity 
*Tnto law. I've laid my life an 'off riag 
To rupture both the evil and its f'e'fl 
Offspring, the law. I'm willing then, to grop*** 
These cobwebb'd lairs, and snuff miasma, =aud 
More, to save my fellow— aye, even to 
Leap the breakneck — 'Tis the curse must perish : 
The curse of slavery, the noxious blight 



22 THE M&EAT 

That shrouds huniarirtyf shames manhood and 

Makes of liberty a^ch&tteriftg coward. 

It is not fcha't I #Wh to fee:avehg<*d 

Because my sons were slain; i G?od will avenge n 

Them. On Such power and wisdom I rely. 

Tell me not, then, of rightsinnuraan toads; 

To hold their kin in bonds, j There's my master. 

Him I'm serving. Him alone, Obeying; 

As common guide to virtue for all men. 

We hold all mankind cheated equal ; . 

Whether in pimple childhood, in manhood 

Or old age,, nation, se^ or color. Here 

Is their birthright — the Book of the Almighty 

And the Constitution ! My punishment 

Is death. Well, I forgive the henchman. If 

The black nightcap's mirk do awe the thoughtbound. 

If, through my doom men's souls are convicted 

Or' slavery's evil; if, in my dying, 

Men's minds be enlighten'd to slavery's evil ; 

If, by my dying, humanity be 

Wak'd 'gainst slavery's evil, then, welcome death 1 

His sting is impotent; and I, most rich, 

In payment of this sacrifice, shall mount 

The glutton gallows, with hopes as buoyant 

As an infant's pulse; and in a manly 

Death, will rend the tyrant's chains. Men clamor 

For my blood. They've forged these laws; I suffer 

Them ; though they smudge as dark and infamous 

As the clammy fog that cases in the 

Nucleus of hell ! Oh, may these murder'd 

Bones ne'er sleep ; but haunt in horrid winding 

Sheets, with og'rish mock, their dormitories ; 

And devils flap their webb'd and moping pennants 

Round, o'er orgies demoniacal yelling ; 

Till jaded conscience, South, and ripen'd 

Forces, North, conspire to crush these wrongs. 



REBEELIOX. 23 

M&enter Kbepeb with Sheriff and Officers, . 
Sheriff. . $'cmt time is, come - , 

'Good friend. The lawM^spectf'ully f^e^knells 
T..aft;^e ; do interrupt this colloquy. - : •. 
The hour is swiftrapfrrdaching. to your end. 
'Shall Iradmit BAchapllain ? 

J. B. Of holy counsellors have I no need, 
?Save One. Dispatch this 'business quietly 
-And quickly. 

Sheriff advances. Marshall administers the man- 
acles. Officers take their stand on each side of ]>ris- 
'Oner, and march toward the gallows. Exeunt ontnes. 

Scene IV. A gallows on the green. 
Enter Hangman and Negro Carpenter. 
Hang. Dees ees vun contiee veree pecoolaiie, I 
teenks. Vun co ooip an' ze ozer down. 

Carp. I does'nt zac r !y un'stfm' de meanin' ob 
<dat obsarvation, sab. Please 'splain your position. 
Hang. Mon Dieu ! Zat ees peek talk fur to 
•come from under wool. Vat you say? 

'Carp. I say, I dont ccmprehen' wot you say. 
Hang. Ver' veil, I say vun ko down an' same 
itime his voisin he ko oop, eh ? You ought to guess 
zat moosh vizont scratchin'. Look'ee now yoo see 
vun gallus Zaire ? 

Carp. I ought to know suffin' consarnin' dat. 
I's de chile wot got up dat ar histin'-jack, sah. 

Hang. Ver' veil, I say ven vun ko oop, ze uzer he 
•comedown; comprenez? Dees Jean Brown, vous 
1' appelez, ees vun square martyre for all of ze wool- 
ly-heads. Ver' veil, now, je suppose zat ce martyre 
au ransom for all dees wool, git him neck in von 
mauvais pie*ge, and git zat leetle cord, plie"e in vun 
slipknot; savez-vous? And some pauvre diable 
as me he shall have ze quoi a manger for zat service, 



U THE GREAT 

hectttctette cord la; savez, zat hold ze grand ballance; 
allez! Alois, ze vun he monte oop, and vun be 
torabe down, n'est pas ? Eh bien, je ms zees eon- 
tree he got d' institutions pecooliares. 

Carp. Wot yo gwang to do wid yer lor break- 
ers in yer own kentry fur de high crime ob trea- 
son, sah? 

Hang. Va, ve cuts ze heads off, allez ; tout sim- 
plenaent. No saire, yoo'llsee no oops ah' downs, la 
teas! Se offizaire of ze law, he not villin' to help ze 
pO®r man oop. If he be born oop, he stay oop ; if 
he be born down, ver veil, he stay down ; mais, 
rilon cfieu, je trouve zat in yoor bonne contree ho 
git help oop, bien souvant, on top of vun leetle gal- 
lus, allez ; an' ze nobler teengs vat he do, ze higher 
he git lifted an' ze'leetler big teengs vat he steal he 
git let down easy; voyez Vous, zat in votre bonne 
contree to git pub- down c'est 'to be lift up; vite, 
allez ! Zat ees pourquoi que.jje'dis cette con tree he 
got d' institutions particulieres. 'Comprenez ? 

Carp. Lor' wot mul'tudes ob (folks is come to 
.see dis ex'ciition'! 

Enter Sheriff with officers and guard; Johv 
Brown and Visitor between them. Weeping friends 
and a multitude following. Group of negroes shying 
about, at a distance. 

Vis. Oh my dear friend 

J. B. My name's John Brown. 

Vis. Nay, do not rebuke me; this is a gloomy 
feour, 

•JT, B. "'Twill soon be past. Be faithful to thy 
charge. 
Bear my will and letters to my household. 
Shake hands with each and say that father lov'd, 
And commended them to the Great Father 
And died happy. 



REBELLION. 25 

., Brown mounts the scaffold and Sheriff administers 
the slip-knot and black cap. Mixed sobs and jeers heard. 
• ,■ Sher. Five minutes time are given you to confess 

Or give directions for your effects 

J. B. Avaunt, ye maudlin pand'rers of the law! 
Am I one who basely dies, driveling 
Confessions which compromise God's mandate ? 
Nor do I quake in simp'ring negligence 
Of thine and mine. Commit this tragedy 
Betimes. I'm ready. 

Executioner draws and curtain falls. Moans 
and jeers swell louder from the stage. 

Scene Y. A graveyard by moonlight. 
Enter a numerous band of Slaves, singing. 

Quartette. 
De mornin' star ob freedom rises o'er de eastern sky 
An' de tyrants wi' de swords an' raids ob champions 

shall die, 
Though ole John Brown an' comrades in dar 

graves low lie 
Dar souls, dey're marchin' on. 
All. 
G-lory, glory, Hallelujah ! 
• Glory, glory, Hallelujah ! 
Glory, glory, Hallelujah ! 
Dar souls are marchin' on. 
Quartette. 
Dey're fannin' to de flames freedom's dross consum- 

in' fires, 
Dey're livenin' de hearts ob men wi' nobler desires, 
For to battle wid oppression dar army never tires 
As dar souls go marchin' on. 
All. 



26 THE GREAT 

We see de t' rones a shakin' afore dar mighty tread 
An* de man drivin' despotis* a tremblin' wi' dread, 
An' a hollerin' for de big moguls to kiver up 

its head 
As dey go marchin' on. 

All. 

Glory, glory, Hallelujah I 
Glory, glory, Hallelujah ! 
Glory, glory, Hallelujah ! 
Dar souls are marchin' on. 

Quartette. 

We ?ee de people risin' up an' offerin' dar han's 

To all ob de Brudderen in all norvern lan's, 

An' Dixie's line'll disappear like tracks in 

hurricanes 
As dar souls go marchin' on. 

All. 

G-lory, glory, Hallelujah ! 

Glory, glory, Hallelujah ! 

Glory, glory, Hallelujah ! 

Dar souls are marchin' on. 



ACT II. 

Scene I. Washington. A Secret Apartment. 
Enter Jefferson Davis. 

Davis. The hour of midnight's come. High 
time it is, 
The banded knights of this conclavium 
Be noislessly approaching. The mighty 
Business of disunion ! Complete o'erthrow 
Of this inchoate creature — the Republic. 
Our '"Institution" leans for its bold life 
Upon such action! Union and slavery 
Are discrepant sisters. The Union is 
Too free. A lash and auction-thong are tools 
Befitting best the slave. They liven and 
Make keen his brawn ; and that suffices for 
The master's ends. A narrow mind has not 
Enough of thwack to keep the limbs astir. 
Brains may supply Caucasians with a forte 
Which quickens muscle and shapes ambition, 
Whose constant rub creates a fev'rish heat 
And renders inaction painful. Here's a 
Secret of the growing strength of northern 
Enterprise. But the numb slave, possessing 
Vig'rous phisique and low front, wants, like the 
Ox, the pungent suasion of a lash, to 
Quicken his inertia ; make him useful. 



REBELLION. 2Q 

Twill never do to teach him, or waken 

The dim ray of mental force he gathers. 

Nay, one must urge branal stupidity ; 

Deny him brain developments ; consign 

His gift of thought to Lollards' pyre-stake. 

We'll cultivate by scientific mix 

The best corporeal status of the race. 

Egad ! The air's too free for slavery. 

One of the two must go. Ah liberty, 

Thou'rt meek and childish ; thou hast no masters ; 

Control' st thyself, eh ; credulous my ops ! 

Forgiving, cansfnot judge an enemy 

Till thou feel'st his cut; and yet a Ceasar, 

That coys arms and sympathies and fellows! 

I'll be thy Brutus; yet unlike a Brutus, 

Will erect a throne and mount its sella. 

An Anglo-Columbian monarchy 

On bondage basis ! Northmen, forever 

Hush your brawl of vapid Monroe doctrines. 

Shrewd kingdoms of the earth shall recognize 

Enter Lee, Mason, Slidell, Wise, Beaure- 
gard, Bhett, Wigfall, Toombs, Floyd and others. 
And uphold me. Ho, friends, good morrow, 
How fare you? Are the rest forthcoming? Past 
Is the midnight and I'm getting nervous. 
Welcome, most welcome, gentlemen. We're bound 
By previous oath most sacred, to keep our 
Councils secret. Now whilst the clouds of war 
Are bursting, must we refresh this promise; 
Even tho' we scribe our names with crayons ting'd 
In blood ; must close these talks hebdomadal 
This night, that we best hasten to the front 
And quit this stifling city, putrid of - 
Saucy thoughts which smut the age. The oath is 
Secresy, fidelity and resolve. 



30 THE GREAT 

Momentous launch; the outcomings whereof 

Depend upon your energies. I call 

This Club to order. Brethren step forward. 

It behoves us then, t' renew our oath 

This night. Mason, to your experience 

And statesmanship I do trust this solemn 

Work. Sagacity is a green palmetto 

From whose branches hangs concealed a whipcord. 

This night we grasp our lives in hand, to shape 

The deeds which tremblingly do darkle 'neath 

The sword of Damocles. 

Mason. The bells have toll'd the om'nous hour 
of twelve. 
A flitting moment gone, and all was peace. 
The haughty north with her proud millions, sleeps 
The world's slumbers. Yet methinks a nightmare 
Broods o'er her dormant thought; some startling 
Premonitor to brawl mysterious rumor 
Of the presence of the skinny monster, 

Enter Stevens, unobserved. 
War, that with the peal of yonder midnight 
Bell, was born. The great election's o'er. At last 
The slurring mudsills have their president ! 
Regret it not. Many long years has good 
King Cotton ruled and chafed the yapping north 
With lion's warning to beware trespass 
On his fav'rite mess. All those sullen years 
That grease smear' d north, like curling curs obey'd. 
The southern lion, having waxed careless 
And incautious of the harmless spaniel, 
Snapping at his heels, o'erlooked th' encroachment. 
At length arousing, he this night, bursts forth 
In self vindication, with deaf 'ning roar 
And the dumb enemy shall be devoured. 
The nature of our Slave Institution 
Is retrogade. She beckons backward to 



rebellion: n 

The sunny days of feudal Europe; when 

Title' d lords, in equipage august, with 

Liveried retinue, from palace, castle, 

Or green bower proceeded, each with his train 

Of beaut' ous belles, array'd in rarest silks 

And garlanded with aromatic flowers 

And spark'ling diamonds, to join the thrilling 

Chase, and with many a recreant pastime 

While the languid hour. She beckons backward 

To the golden days of chivalry ; when 

Strong men asserted manhood. When handsome 

Knights, and bold, lent their protection to the 

Fair. When gilded kings, on thrones of burnish'cl 

G-old, held pompous parlance with the mighty. 

When lords and courtiers and sweet ladies, all, 

Studied but to be happy. Him born of 

Royal parentage, all worshipp'd ; him born 

Of noble, all honored; but he, whose lot 

It was t' inherit rags — Bah I've no time 

To fritter in huts of poverty ; vile 

And unlettered were they ; yet then, as now,. 

Made good tillers of the soil ; good drudges, 

G-ood soldiers ; and when kept ignorant of 

Their combin'd strength, were most invaluable.- 

Glance, ye men of blood, upon those genial 

Ajres of the past. Those days of sunny 

Pleasure that drifted, wafted the passive 

Lives of men on balmy zephyrs and tipped 

Th' intoxicating cup of happiness, 

Sweet happiness, royal and sparkling! Andi 

Then, reflect that ye claim geniture, through 

Lineage direct, of noble blood. 

Reflect that your prerogative and claim 

On lands transmitted to your kin by kings,- 

Are curtailed and contested by yankee 

Innovation; by the loquacious 



32 THE GREAT 

Yankee ; the meddlesome yankee ; th' obtrusive 

Ubiquitous, oppugnant yankee! He 

Cannot file a claim to noble blood, sprung 

As he is from banish' d convict cion, 

So seeks, by taking vantage of new lands 

I' the new found world whereon he squats and draws 

A squeaking file, a noisy sledge, making 

The din of Vulcan's thunder mountain with 

Greasy thews and rattling pate, t' institute 

Reforms; base governments on theories 

Of equal rights, that lift the sluggish slaves 

As high as ye ; ' and jabbers a jargon 

Never quelPd 'gainst your acknowledg'd right to 

Hold them bondsmen. Ye men of blood, reflect. 

Reflect upon the outrages ye smart 

And answer me. Will ye endure it? 

All. [except Stevens] No. 

Mas. Will ye resist it? 

All. We will, we will. 

Mas. Will ye dislodge th' usurping mountebank 
And on his quitted claim, build the sacred 
Empire of your inheritance? 

All. We will. So help us God ! 

Mas. Then, ere ye mount the project, take oath; 
Each speaking loud his name where I use mine. 

All, [except Stevens, who is unnoticed] form a ring 
each touching the book. 
I, John Mason, most solemnly do swear 
That from this hour I will devote my strength, 
My will, my influence, my property, 
Even my life will sacrifice, in the 
Intent and purpose of destroying northern 
Liberties, crushing democracy by 
Arra'd rebellion and for the purpose of 
Creating, of the Southern States, and as 
Much of the North as in our hands shall fell. 



REBELLION. 33 

An empire, on the slave basis. For this, 
1 will wage war upon the feudal, and 
Ennobling principal that might makes right ; 
Holding all enemies as deadly foes 
Deserving death by torture ; and I will 
Not discriminate 'twixt age or sex, rich or 
Poor, civil or military ; but strike 
Vengeance on the heads of all within my 
Grasp, entombing them in loathsome prison 
Caves, or hurrying them to block and vale and 
Scaffold to meet an unrepentant doom; 
And further ; as in feudal ages, I 
Will hold hostages, abnegate pardons, 
Wreak retaliation, practice civil 
Espionage and keep hir'd assassins. 
To do these deeds infernal do I swear, 
— The moral ethics of wars in ages 
Mecliceval, and of antiquity, 
My justifiers — till my enemies 
Are overwhelmed, subjugated or 
Destroyed ; and in the virtue of this oath 
Do I inaugurate, proclaim, and launch 
Upon the blasts, a war, extirpating 
The northern principles. So help me God. 

Wigfall. Mr. chairman. It is now first in the 
order of business, and as the power rests upon the 
decision of this body, exclusively, let us attend to 
the appointment of rulers and to the denomination 
of our inchoate confederacy. 

Slidell. The suggestion of the Hon. Senator, is 
most appropriate. The South is expected to adopt 
an ordinance of secession. Measures have already 
been taken to frame these ordinances, and immedi- 
ately pass them through the several legislative coun- 
cils of the state ; and that this important feature of 
our strategy may not fail, paid emissaries have been 



34 THE GREAT 

sent to canvass each state and inflame the minds 
of the populace in our favor. But immediately the 
States secede, they become a disorganized mars, 
unless they resolve themselves into a government, 
with name and head. 

Davis. One of the worthy personages present 
must be chosen Dictator and commander in chief. 
Gentlemen whom will you have ? 

Ehett. No one would seem more capable to en- 
gineer, as civil head and chief of military, than our 
worthy chairman, whom I nominate. • 

Davis. Gentlemen, I beg you to excuse me. 
The noble gentleman himself, methinks, 
Were better fitted for that office ; or 
The worthy senator from Georgia. 

Toombs. Mr Chairman, two or three gentlemen 
are nominated. I move the president be elected 
by ballet of the club. 

Wigf. Allow me to second this proposition. 

D.wis. Gentlemen. It is both proposed and 
seconded, that a President, Commander in chief or 
Pic f ator, whose duty it shall be to arrange and con- 
duct the important business of this Confederation, 
1 e chosen from the three nominated. Are you 
ready for the question? 

All. Heady. 

Davis. All ye who favor this movement, signi- 
fv by an uplifted hand. Down. Contrary by same 
S'<rn. Carried. Bring out the ballot box. 
Good friends, consider well before you choose; 
Much doth depend upon the wisdom of 
This cast. [Each puts his slip of paper into the 
tor. 

Herald. [To Davis.] I do declare your worth- 
iness elected. 

Wigf. I move, Mr. Chairman, that this territo- 



REBELLION. 35 

ry over wliicli you are chosen to preside, receive, 
pro tempore, the appellation of the Confederate 
States. 

Toombs. I second the motion. 

Davis. It is motioned and seconded that the 
territory over which you have called me to preside 
shall be known as the Confederate States of Amer- 
ica, until we gain our independence. All who 
favor that, signify their approval by the good 
word, I. Unanimous ! A toast for the South- 
ern Confederacy. [Shouting and cheering, \ 
Robert E. Lee, I appoint you Lieutenant General. 
Commander of my forces in Northern Virginia. 
L shall eventually make you ruler over my 
Maryland. 

Steph. [Aside.] My Maryland; mark, my 
Maryland ! 

Davis. As the town of Washington is situated 
within the [ Ghost, observed only by Stevens, is seen 
writing each name uvon the wall in large blood letters] 
geographical limits of My Maryland, and as it, like 
dumb creatures, will probably make some slight 
resistance, I shall send you with a good force and 
with directions to capture it within three months. 
G-. T Beauregard, sir, I make you Major General 
and shall give you a command duly. Messrs, Ma- 
son and Slidell, I appoint you straightway,. ministers 
plenepotentiary to England and France ; and your 
eminent qualifications as diplomatists, sanction my 
decision. Leave no strategy untried, but forthwith 
effect a recognition of my Confederacy. 

Steph. [Aside] My Confederacy! Too me- 
chanical. The thing is cut and dried. 

Davis. Behold, now from this seat too com- 
mon, we 
Descend, that we ascend the throne of a 



36 THE GREAT 

"New born principality ! But lest ye 

Marvel, or think these words too bold, 'tis not 

A throne veritable we do mount, but 

A gigantic power in embryo ; composed 

Of parts, dissevered by dissentions, strong 

In union and wanting but organic 

Joint through tact of leadership. By your shrewd 

Judgment and assistance in the work of 

War and of coordination, we do 

Promise to develop, of this struggling, 

Prone constituency, an empire so grand, 

So mighty, so imposing, that e'en the 

Spirits of Zingis Khan, and Mahmoud shall 

See their hopes eclipsed. Let us dissolve these 

Gatherings nocturnal and henceforth act 

Before the open world. Let wine be brought, 

That each may drink the others' health and ray 

The nightly shadows. 

Steph. [Aside.] My Maryland, My Confederacy! 
By Jove, I cannot brook it! 'Tis too strong. [To 
Davis]. 'Whom the gods would destroy, they 

first make mad.' 
O, vir miserrime ! Quae vident oculi ? 
These are the orgies saturnalian; 
Our gift from Pluto. I did think the god 
Of drunkenness, abashed and stupefied 
O'er scenes, eclipsing the damning revels 
Of degen'rate Rome, would scarce introduce 
The demon bowl on such a night as this ! 
Spite of all the murky struggles of my 
Repellant soul, after the dismal deeds ' 
Of this portentious night, this mawkish night; 
Whose consequence shall go far to fabric 
History ; whose typified events shall 
Be inscribed in blood but ne'er the half be 
Chronicled, behold the bacchanal ! Tell 



REBELLION. 37 

Me, infatuate revelers, tell me, 

Do ye dare ween that all these secret schemes, 

Revolting plots and bandit oaths, o'erglozed 

To feasibility b' inciting wine, 

Lascivious dance, and croaky cheering, 

Make your mad treason less like Catiline's. 

I warn ye of your madness. Beware how 

Ye foment the powder of contending 

Elements — slav'ry and freedom. Inborn, 

Their nature is antagonistical 

As heaven and hell ; and though by preference 

I espouse the cause of slav'ry, yet I 

Tremble lest too soon they come to deadly 

Tilt. Sir, 'twill not be a re-enactment 

Of Neronian scenes ; tyrants have but the 

Sultry passions of their depravity 

To urge a, brutal carnage. Nor will it 

Be a glum rehash of deeds Caligulan, 

Where vagrant wrath let carmine waters paint 

The channel of classic Tiber with tint 

From veins of innocence; whose fountain head 

The reeking knife and axe; whose name was death. 

Nay, 'twill be a shock electrical from 

Batteries surcharged like long pent lightnings, 

From that more dang'rous urgent, a people's 

Will ! Will ye thus aggravate the friction 

Of contumacy, of sneer, of censure, 

Easping our smarting sores, with twit, snub, jeer? 

This rub has charged both batt'ries to bursting. 

Factions are wrecking candor, drifting to 

Madness ; fretting with ideas, principles 

Of which they have not brain to work a clear 

Solution. The hairbrain'd North, too hot for 

Sane reflections, catchtheintelligence 

Of our faults which flit the wires ; and wanting 

Charity and sense, proclaim with frothing 



33 THE GREAT 

Months, bellowing throats,and frantic gesture 

Their wild exaggerations, forcing a 

Bias throughout the land against us; whilst we, 

Too sensitive, and wanting prudence, fall 

Back upon the old ancestral warfare ; 

Forgetting that law and order are the 

Fruit of judgment. We burn t'assail and 

Punish with a reckless hand. We foster 

Unchristian thoughts ; harbor sullen hatreds ; 

Bosom implacability, chronic 

With gangrene of a fire-fed lust for blood 

And glory ; and thus fan follies' foibles. 

Passions, Sir, Wilt thou the hell-blasts hotter ? 

Spare me the grim responsibility 

Of medium through whom these lightnings fork'd 

Shall burst their bounds ! 'Twere a rencounter 

Whose rams of war must jar both heaven and 

'Earth. A swoop that in fierce grapple hawks hosts 

Who fight not for a master, but for a 

Principle. Green in each warrior's breast.- 

Og'rish and mad, do I foresee this jam. 

Children made homeless, and homes heartless ; 

waste 
And desolation; cold blooded butcheries j 
Annihilating battles ; brute impulse 
Infuriated ; the weepings of woe 
Mock'd by the lechery of unpent sm; 
Wealth bankrupt; treasuries depleted; 
Laws nullified ; society awreck; 
Morals aswoon ; religion banished .... 

Davis. Hold, hold, good friend ! Thy elegy 
Ports terror. Thou shockst us. Prithee prorogue 
Yon thrilling figure. The company are 
Siezed with pangs of conscience and crouch 

trembling. 
Didst thus speedily disclaim thine oath? 



REBELLION. 39 

Stepel Tell me not of that oath. Did I begore 
This hand or black this heart with idle oaths ? 
I tarried contemplating the 
The doings of a sprite that stalked the room 
With real presence, or was bred of my 
Imagination, and scrawled with blood red 
Letters the new Belshazzar's doom. 

Davis. Friends, did you see a spirit? 

Toombs. We saw none. 

Sli. 'Twas all a picture of a fervid brain. 

Wigf. I fear this augurs badly for our cause-; 
What uncouth marks are those? 

Steph. Work of that ghostly hand. 

Mas. Nonsense, nonsense. Take down that 
bloody scrawl. 
There's a traitor present. 

Beau. Let him be caught and like a traitor die. 

Lee. Friends banish this causeless, terror ere it 
Become a precedent. If we set out 
Upon this enterprise whilst gaunt omens 
Rack us. the same dejection will teaze till 
Doomsday. You're niggling with forebodings. 
It's a good general that outgenerals 
Grloom. Away with it. ' Let work and mirth go 
Hand in hand. Here, Aleck, take a glass. 

Dav. G-ood friend, 'tis now too late to moralize. 
This quarrel is foregone. Eloquence and 
Caution craze one's talk of things unlikely. 
We play prophetic language, hinting at 
Dangers , yet a blind incredulous can 
See in ours a brilliant undertaking. 
We speak of media that must conduct 
With murderous onset th ? impassioned 
Bolts of war; yet, cannot meet arguments 
Thrice dead ! Has not the Northerners' election 
Declared hostilities? Will ye tamely 



40 THE GREAT 

Cower to that gaunt hoosier whom for want of 
Better stock, they've chosen tyrant? A. tann'd 
Faced rail-splitter ! A beast untam'd, as the 
Owl-denn'd prairies, whence he hails. 

Steph;. Dont call Abe Lincoln either beast 

or fool. 
Mas. Hold, stop this senseless jangle. It 

breeds ill. 
Lee. Come, Aleck, you have not yet accepted 

our toast. 
Wigf. We were going to nominate you Vice 
President; but an unsound friend may be a danger- 
ous ally. 

Steph. You'll not find me unsound when there's 
a shade 
Of hope. By predilection, I'm with. you. 

Hunter. You hint that you would accept this 
o3iee and be loyal, if it were offered you? 

Steph. First I must know my honors, after the 
Struggle's past and independence won. 

Davis. Sir, long have we placed security on 
Your sage counsel, and cool candor ; and now 
We stand amazed at these glum bodings, which 
Seem strangely urged, as though an artifice 
To try us. Say you accept our offer 
And you shall be a title'd lord, grace'd with 
A dukedom, embracing all the acres 
Of your native state. 

Steph. On these conditions I accept. 
Wigf. Now, since the harmony of consent 
chords with the harmony of music, let us be glad 
and drink wine and toasts; with cheers for Davis 
and Stephens, king and prime ministers of a new 
born principality; [Hurrahs.] 

Steph. [Aside.] So they concluded to notice the 
hunchback. Sold! Principle for honors. Pre- 



REBELLION. 41 

carious. Who runs no ventures stands no chances. 
Good bargain! Hem. 

Scene II. A Country Roadside. 
Enter Quash y the Carpenter. 

Quash. Well, 'taint a good year gone sens I 
made poor John Brown's gallus. I promised dis 
yer nigger 'twould be de last 'litionist's gallus dey'd 
force 'im to make, an' I've kep my word at de cost 
ob runnin' away. Here I is, up here, norf ob Ma- 
son an' Dixie's line safe* yet I feels kinder skittish 
whenever I meets a white man. Dey aint zactly 
what I trought dey was. Some on em's bery kind, 
but odders is mighty sabage. I'se gin ole mars de 
slip, an' less some demercrat takes de wantage ob 
de fugertive slave laws to git de premium on my 
head, I guess I'll git clar dis yer time from bon- 
dage. Yah, heah, heah, yah. I feels merry ober 
dat an' I trusts in de Lawd. Suffin's tellin' me I 
shall see my poor wife and chillun agin. Dey've 
killed de poor ole martyr wat 'tempted to liberate 
us poor darkies, but anudder Moses'll spring up 
from his ashes, an' de poor darks'll be all set free. 
But stop, nig, who dat? 

Enter Copperhead. 

Cop. By Jove ! Here comes a runaway nigger. 
My booty. I'll make a cool thousand on him; fat 
sleek and greasy ; just escaped from the planter — 
the poor planter! What a ruinous loss! Hello 
nig, which way ? 

Quash. I'se gwine home, sah. 

Cop. Where do you live ? 

Quash. Up on de hill, yen. 

Cop. You lie sir, I'm acquainted hereabouts, 
and know there's no such ebony growing green on 
these hills. I arrest you for a runaway slave ac- 
cording to law. 



42 THE GREAT 

Quash. Stan' back Sah, dont put dem fingers 
on dis chile. . ; " 

Cop. {Seizing Mm] Help, help, I demand help' 
in the name of the fugitive slave law ! 

Quash. [Knocking him down.] Han's oft,' I, 
say, sah. 

Enter Hunting Joe. 

Cop. Oh, heigh! Here, here, old fellow, lend^ 
a hand. 

Joe. What you doin' with that ar nigger? > 

Cop. I arrest him as a runaway ; and I command 
you to help me, according to law. 

Joe. Are yo a runaway, nig? Yo mought as~ 
wal own up as lie. ; 

Quash. [Dropping on his knees.] Lor' have mer- 
cy on my poor wife an' chillun. 

Cop. Here, come with me. Ho, help! 

Joe. Shet up that ar bellerin' yo apish booby. 

Cop. What's that you call me ? Do you know 
whom you are speaking to? It so happens that L 
helped make the law in question. 

Quash. Oh please, mars gunner, take my part. 

Joe. Go 'way from me nigger. Here, come' 
back. Set down on the grass thar. [To Cop.] I say: 
sir, you're a gen' wine, loafin' baboon. What d'ye: 
(jal'late ter do with, that ar nigger wunst you've 
got 'im across Mason and Dixie's line ? 

Cop. I shall advertize, and restore him to- his' 
master. : -, 

Joe. Wal, spose yo did'nt find any owner. , ; 

Cop. In that case I shall dispose of him on my 
own terms,. 

Joe. Wal, I understan'; yo mean ter kidnap that 
ar nigger, an' send 'im inter captiverty, an' bein' a: 
political or some other swindlin' rooster yo'd stan ? a 
fair chance, bein' as the poor feller's got no friends. 



REBELLION, 43 

Yo take advantage of weakness an'" the lobby laws ; 
an', hits nobody but a dishonest coward'll do it. 
- Cop. You lantern jawed — 
. Joe. [Seizing him.] Look'ee, d'yo call hit yer 
place fur to call me names? Now walk, Whistle, 
nig, u G-o you rogue you," Out, march. Halt a 
minute. Take off yer hat an' holler hurrah for 
Abe- Lincoln. Here nig, dance 'im a double shuf- 
fle jes fur to make 'im feel merry. Shout I say. 

Cop. Hur, hur, rah, 
I Joe. Louder ! 

Cop. Why dont you order me to shoot myself? 
IM rather do it. It's against my principles to hur- 
rah for old Abe, 

. Joe. Time enough ter shute yerself arterwards 
if ye've got the grit. I own yo need shutin' but 
its too good fur ye now. The devil haint got a 
hole hot enough yit, fur ter stow away yer carcass. 
Yell now, yo cowardly nigger-thief, louder, loud- 
er, I say. 

Cop. Hurrah for Abe Lincoln. 

Joe. Thar, now, nig, whistle; an' yo nigger 
butcher, march under my safe conduct, Forward, 
march ! [Exeunt Joe and Cop, the former having 
him by the collar.] 

i Quash. Oh, I'se free ! I'se 'scaped ! Blessins- 
'pon dat long legged, gunnin' man, wid de skin 
breeches ! Yah, I'se happy now ; but I blebe ef 
I'd a chonked once I'd a jes bit my heart in two; 
foh it come bang in my mouf. 
Reenter Joe. 

Joe. Wal, nig, I've come back ter show yo the 
way t' a safe place. Come with me to yen village. 

[Shouting in the distance.] Whats all the row 
thar ? Let's go. ~ [Exeunt 



44 THE GREAT 

Scene III. A street in the village. Citizens shout- 
ing and running. 

Enter Joe and the negro. 

Joe. What's up thar, boys? What's in the 
wind? 

First Cit. Have you not heard the news? Fort 
Sumpter's fall'n. 
Arm, brave boys, to arms! Legion on legion 
Let your strength pour in. Our flag's insulted 
By the haughty autocrat of slavery. 
The lowering cloud that ominously 
Hung o'er liberty's horizon at last 
Has burst ; and at the first concussion, while 
The wires ache with burdens of this shameful 
News, the drowsy North wakes from her slumbers 
But to exchange her fitful dream of war 
For grim reality ; and now awaked 
By cannon's boom, sees with eyes unhoodwink'd 
The treach'rous nature of her enemies 
Too long forborne ; to see her dear old flag 
Shot down, disgraced; her fair fame degraded 
To be the scoff of jealous monarchies; 
Derision of earth's kingdoms ; since her great 
Humanizing word '-democracy" has 
Prov'd a failure! Oh, 'tis too much! Th' insult's 
Too deep ; thousands, thousands, are springing at • 
The hurt of mutual degradation to 
To the shrine of war, calling for arms, leaders. 
To arms ! To arms, Brave men ! With patriarch 
Abraham, whose heart, like his grand purpose 
Lies staunchly grounded as the bottom rock. 
We'll hurl th' aggressive waves of slavery 
Back against the foes who forge our gyves. 

Second Cit. Come one and all, brave boys; dont 
let our village be behind the rest. Bally round the 
flag. You are safe with honest Abram Lincoln. 



REBELLION. 45 

Joe. Boys, I'm up from old Ken tuck, whar Abe 
Lincoln war born. [Citizens gather round Joe.] I 
hed a right smart uv a meetin' with 'im wunst, in 
Illinois an 1 he tole me some mighty sensible things. 
I know that ar man right wal; an' kin tell ye he's 
got the right pluck too. Ye kin bet high on that ar. 
I jes this minute made a cowardly sneak what at- 
tempted fur ter kidnap this yer nigger — I say I jes 
drummed 'im out o' camp to the tune of "Go you 
rogue you." Now, nig, whether yo air a runaway 
or no, yo ken fight fur yer freedom can't yer? 
Smash the rotten fugertive slave law ! Will yer 
fight? 

Quash. Yas, dat I'll do. Dat's a grand notion. 
Gorry, I'll smash some on em. I'se got many a 
scar on my back, but its stout enough yet to kerry 
a knapsack and gun. 

Joe. Good on yer head, wooly, stay by me. I'll 
gin yer 'nufF fur to eat and drink jes fur that ar. 

Third Cit. [Aside] Good loyal fellow, is that. 

Joe. Come with me, my good feller, yo need 
refreshments. Yes, I knowed Abe Lincoln, an' I 
repeat, he's got the stuff in 'im. 

[Enter a messenger.] 

. Mess. The president has issued a proclamation 

calling immediately for seventy five thousand men. 

[A marshall is seen taking enlistment?. Fife and 
drum heard. Soldiers march through and return. 

Joe. Good! I told ye. That ar looks like war 
in dead airnest. I'll jes git up a company myself, 
though I'm getting to be an old man. I'll let the 
rebels see what an old backwoodsman kin do, a 
traitor huntin'. [ Exeunt Joe and the negro. 

First Cit. Let the enlistments go on as rapidly 
as possible. (Curtain drops while music, marching 
and counter- marching is going on.) 



TEE GREAT 



ACT III. 



Scene 1. The fortifications and scenery on the 
battle-ground of Bull Rtin, 

Enter Civilians an,d Copperhead. 

Copperhead.; We are a jolly crowd from Wash- 
ington, , ■ 
Arrived to view this battle on Bull Run, 
And mark this onset of discordant war 
'Twixt the green Yankee and ripe Southron power. 
Ah 1 In the distance hear the rattling sound, 
As musket volleys through the woods resound. 
Many a black Republican shall gasp, 
Before this battle demon loose his grasp. 
Oh, I do long to see my southern friends 
Break from their thralldom — the vile, filthy dens 
Of northern commerce, northern legislation, 
Northern insult, taunt, slur, crimination, 
E'en northern enterprise I'd fain see warr'd down, 
While sacred slavery wafts a fair renown 
From deep to deep ;' extending yet her sway 
O'er the whole continent of America. 
What can that crazy, apish Lincoln think ? 
Throwing his untrained rabble on the brink 
Of fell destruction. There he sits in state, 
And from his usurp'd seat puffs fool's dictate 
To mushroom generals, regardless of their plan 
Suggested by the features of the land. 
How can so great collision of men's brains 
Fail to secure the vict'ry to our friends ? 



REBELLION, 47 

Oh, 'twas the crowning stroke of Yankee shave 

To make a president of that worthless knave; 

That tyrant; that folly babbling joker; 

That rail-splitter and abolition croaker. 

With no more mind to urge his flat brawl'd 

speeches, 
Than the numb negro slave for- whom he preaches. 
Detestable, maudlin, ladder legged spy. 
Oh had I adjectives to qualify , ' TJ! 
My? abject loathing of that hated'Tat.,- , 
I'd torture language-.- [A bomb shell drops and 
explodes.'] Wough, bah, run, boys, run! 

^ifflrst Civilian. Q-etttlemen, that visitor comes 
at a ruinous proximity. For my 7 part I feel dis- 
mayed. I can say I now see the point wherein 
heels are more valuable than heads. [Runs. 

. • Second Civ. It appears by the sound of the 
battle that our forces are being driven by the en- 
emy. 

Cop. I dont know whether to run or hide. 
Zounds! It's a wonder that shell had'nt blown me 
to "the undiscovered country from whose bourne no 
traveller returns". I think I'll crawl in among the 
rocks. Hark, ho ! Run for life ! The yankees are 
whipped ; retreating in confusion ! [Hiding ] Hello 
there, every man of you ; spread the alarm ! The 
rebels are upon us. [Aside.] But as I sympathize 
with them I'll have nothing to fear. 

Enter Joe, fighting his assailants. Confusion a- 
mongst the civilians. Rebel war-cry heard advancing. 
Joe. [Struggling with superior numbers.] Take 
that ar, yo hairy cannibal. [He dies.] Courage men, 
don't give way. Right about, face, charge ! Come 
on, yo black alligator. [Strikes a rebel Captain rush- 
ing on him.] Ha, yo grazed me that ar time ; hit'll 
be the last time yer'll ever scratch ole Joe. Git 



48 THE GREAT 

this an' chaw it till yer hide's as black as yer infar- 
nal boss's down thar whar I send yo ter. 

Rebel Colonel. Oh, I'm killed. [Dies.] 

Joe. Yo mought uv expected as much. I'll lam 

yer. Boys I'm a bleedin'. The rebs is comin'. Go 

take care o' yerselves. I'll be at yer head agin. 

This yer scratch'll be uv small account. [Rebels 

surround and take Joe and others prisoners.] 

Enter BeAijregard, Davis and a courier on horse- 
back. 

Davis. Ah my brave, noble general; your wit 
And wisdom win. 

Beau. Here Courier, bear these dispatches quickly 
To their several Heads. Bid them proclaim to 
Oar brave troops my best congratulations 
For this great vict'ry they have won for us. 

[Exit Messenger. 
Sir, let me thank you for tins compliment 
For I esteem it ; coming as it does 
From such a noble source. Your hand is warm, 
G-low'd from the furnace of a gushing heart. 

Dav. See how our heroes execute their oath 
And scoop the craven cowards by thousands 
Into the prisoners' list. And those that do 
Escape bear most lugubrious witness 
In their bleeding flesh and broken bones 
OP the reception they are to receive, 
When brought to combat Southern Chivalry. 
One more such victory will affright the 
Northern mudsills to such a crestfall'n ebb 
That they'll fret less their blind belligerence 
And deem the thing most provident to yield 
To their superiors. Meanwhile remember 
The sacred oath. Keep dark the true design 
Of this rebellion. Let our brave warriors 
Think they fight for life and absolution 



REBELLION. 49 

From the liated North ; for if they know 'tis 
For a kingdom, 'twill breed disaffection. 
Let th' imprisoned dogs be sent to Libby 
And Castle Thunder; and there, entomb'd in 
Noxious vaults, confederate with rats and 
Batten on the offal of their worship'd 
Nigger. [Cop. ventures cautiously from his conceal- 
ment and extends his hand to Davis. 

Cop. Greeting, old friends ; 

(xlad to meet you here at this auspicious 
Crisis. 

Dav. Who is he ? Was it not he came crawling 
Like a fiogg'd setter from amongst those rocks ? 
Stand, sir? I think I've seen you somewhere ! 

Cop. My dear sir, you feign forgetfulness. Is 
The past so blackly blackened that but this 
Slender cord remains to bind our mem'ries? 
I am much grieved at this oblivion. 
There were times when in the yankee congress 
We were both honored ; on equal footing ; 
Spurred by like rank and princ'ple; each other's 
Views reciprocated. We hurled defiant 
Language at abolition votaries 
With whom our congress teemed. 'Twas a north- 
ern 
State I represented. So much more credit 
In ratio with the opposition met. 

Beau. GTo over to the south and join the ranks. 
We can't recognize you northern straddlers 
Till you're purged of that stale infusion 
Which makes you rancid to our moral tastes, 
By formal action. 

Dav. I know you not. My province it is not, 
Placed in th' exalted quality 1 hold-^ 
First magnate of a realm— to chatter 
With the denizens of a defunct nation. 



50 THE GREAT 

* 

[Turning to Beauregard.] 
Look to the intVest of yourself and ours. 
I'll in haste return to Richmond. Farewell. 

\ All except Cop., Exeunt. 
Cop. Sniibb'd again ! I'm hated at north and south 
And I hate niggers'. But I'd better leave, 
Lest there descend another omniburst 
To freight me fee-taxed o'er Acheron's flood 
That parts on Charon's rowcraft bad from good. 
[Another shell falls and explodes.] Wough! Terrors 
and confusions ! Vai, where art thou? I see thee 
not in the skies. Such an eruption has scarcely been 
known since the misfortune to Mr. Secundus Pliny. 
The wildest theorist can shape no proof that I am 
longer a breathing man. Yet, I have faculties, body 
and mind. With my right hand 1 explore reason's 
throbbing temple. I feel of my legs with the left. 
They are there. I can stoop and touch the earth. 
True, ray confusion forbids the collected judgment 
I'm wont to use; I have been a man of standing. I 
am now a man standing. I see, feel and hear. Er- 
go, I am unblown. Horrific as wns the explosion, 
spasmodic as was the effect, I will attempt to run. 
Yet when I bethink me of that concussion I reason 
afresh. Firstly: a bomb shell bursts close to mv 
very heels ! It were madness to suppose its frag- 
ments had not mopped mine to the whirlwinds! A 
thing like it was never known. I judge from pre- 
cedent. Ergo, I am blown, and am not here. Per- 
haps a head, an arm, a leg, parts of a mutilated 
trunk are scattered about the battleground as evi- 
dence that I was killed in battle. "" Honorable of 
course. But one argument remains in my favor; 
I have long had a presentiment that on the event 
of my taking off r I should immediately feel pain 
and stifling suffocation as of fire; be made sensible 



REBfiLLlOK. 51 

to this; that long-fingered, grim visages -would* dis- 
gust me with their skinny obtrusions. But JL see, 
now, feel no pain; ergo, I live — either through an 
unexpectedly propitious dispensation of Providence 
if dead, or else by the miraculous fact that I am 
corporeally alive! I decide in favor of the latter — 
I live, therefore I run. One, two, three and ruw/yv. 

[Exit. 

Scene IT. A parlor in the White House. Ma- 
ry and Adelina, wives to Lincoln and Seward. 

Adel. Why? 

Mary. Oh, the perplexities of his situation much 
moi'e than counterbalance the value of mere honors. 

A del. Do you not think, my dear friend, that he 
is happier, as chief magistrate, with the eye of the 
world upon him than ever before? 

Mary. Far from it. Often have I heard him 
mention that his happiest days were those when we 
were tranquilly partaking the blessings of our hum- 
ble home. He thinks there are no sweeter pleasures 
than those obtained from domestic life. 

A del. But do you not think it was ambition that 
led him from this life of quietude to the position 
he now holds? You are aware that people become 
ambitious when they lose contentment. Ambition 
may be pronounced the parent of discontent. There 
must have been a spark of ambition gnawing deep 
in his heart that kindled into a flame as opportunity 
offered it fuel. 

Mary. I understand you, my dear, perfectly; 
but I think I can say Mr. Lincoln was not promp- 
ted by ambition ; that is, not by selfish motive. It 
was duty. He always seemed to be laboring under 
an impression that he had a great duty to perform ; 
and therefore, I doubt not, he would have been un- 
happy had he not fulfilled that requirement. 



52 THE GREAT 

Enter Lincoln, the President and Seward, Ida Sec- 
retary. 

Sew. A pleasant evening, ladies, which you are 
doubtless enjoying. Perhaps our intrusion inter- 
rupts an enlivening colloquy. 

Lin. Ladies have their peculiarities; but is it a 
pecularity in them to be annoyed by any intrusion 
their husbands can make? 

Abel. No, no, sir. Indeed, you are perfectly 
right. 

Lin. You see the point I am aiming at? 

Sew. I apprehend your drift but your points are 
well veiled from my vision. 

Lin. Intrusions are interruptions, but this don't 
make interruptions intrusions. Here you have both 
u point and a blunt. Do you now see? 

Sew. I confess to the main statement but do not 
grasp the logical application. 

Lin. Well, intrusions are supposed to be sharp, 
of course, and solid; else they would not intrude. 

Sew. Yes yes, there is a point. Well, "go in". 

Lin. The interruption is a synonym of bluntness 
as its name implies; — broken off. Now sir, as your 
worshiped Arabians have absorbed the undue gossip 
of a large public, including amateurs, naturalists and 
ladies who arrogate to themselves the right to com- 
pare such beauty with that of a statesman's nose or 
the president's face, thus questioning our champion- 
ship lor ugliness, it is time those rivals were fenced 
from the world's gaze. Just give me a commander 
arid line and out of the two principles, the sharp and 
blunt, I will build them a stake-an'-ridered pen. 

Sew. Ladies, a joke in the wind, at the expense 
of my celebrated, imported ponies ! Please sir, build 
my fence immediately., 

Lin. Easily done. I have made many a fence 



REBELLION. 53 

out of tougher stuff. Now, mark; the ground 
whereon I build is the logic ; the interruptions the 
rail-cuts, split into fence-rails. I am the railsplitter. 

Mary. But, Mr. Lincoln^ 

Lix. Please don't interrupt me. ma'am, now that 
I am farming again. Upon a logical basis I would 
erect my fence even unto the seventh rail in bight. 
Adel. But without interrupting, I must confess 
that your points though they may be logical enough, 
to me are exceedingly dull. Aren't you a bore? 
Lin. Intrusions are sharp ; though no joke, yet 
they drive; hence my fence-stakes. A little muscle 
and with my commander in hand the stakes are driv- 
en "deep in the mellow ground" and the rider put 
on its crossings. Thus you have a fence, strong and 
high enough to hold your arabiahs safe. 
Sew. I see, yet cannot see. 
Lin. Then you must be multiplying more in 
years than vision. 

Sew. Pardon, I see your kindness yet cannot see 
why our entrance here is not an interruption and 
an intrusion upon the ladies' courtesy. 

Lin. Well, I may venture to explain that in a 
few words. Rougher material might have been in- 
trusive; but you observe our abrupt presence be- 
comes not only unintrusive but really desirable. 

Mary. Let me repeat, to stay further warping 
of fancies, that we do most welcome your coming. 

Adel. And further; that this interrupting be 
Forever broken, thus gaining two points 
Where before was one, let's call to mind the 
The subject of our chatting before your 
Gallant entry. 

Lin. E igh, ho, this is the prettiest hit of all ! 
[ could materialize, magician-like, 
Weave wood- webs with wordy woof and filling, 



54 THE GREAT 

To box a 'statesman's ponies up with rails ■' ' 

Of sophistry and pasture them in clover 
Scented syllogism, yet fail to have the . , 

Captious slight of changing; subjects. Ladies, ,';•; 
■ Please resume. 

Adel. We were. . quizzing life's droll vicissi- 
tudes— ■ ... ... 

"Whether it were ambition, fate or chance 
That coaxed you from an unpretending home 
Of comforts, free from the calumnies which 
Embitter fame and made you chief of chiefs. 
Mary. I argued it was duty, not fortune. 
Fortune it is not to buffet hardships 
Which do cincture offices like yours. 

Adel. And I, that 'twere ambition. Is it not 
The steppingstone to greatness? What though fate's 
Bough acclivities, beset withtoils, shall 
Hoist a scowling front! Does it not well 
Repay in doing right, sweet Consciousness 
Possessing that angels. smile? For though of 
Gaze the cynosure from mortal millions, 
Still, in well-doing you live down the whims 
And criticisms of the bad, gaining . 
Pleasure from the good. Accept a woman's 
Judgment, that honest ambition is the 
Prompter to all good works. ! 

Lin. Ha, here is woman's logic ? Well, proceed 
Mary. I argued 'twere premonitory sight, 
Or inspiration ; or a conception 
Germed in early youth, which with its stilly 
Voice was ever breathing duty. Service 
Must be rendered unto* humanity. 

Lin. Whether true or untrue your views may be, 
They're prettily expressed" and pictured ; 
Yet all my actions are most badly managed. 
I feel I've 'scaped your scowling brain-rack — 



REBELLION. 55 

The qualms of legislation — >. when I repair 
To the sweet temple of domestic life, 
Free from the realm of censure. Don't you think 
Now, that a jolly joke, ruddy and rolling, 
Round with ripeness, his very eye choking 
With strains to be demure, is, when your brain is 
Fuiloughed, the most refreshing physic for 
Soul and body ? 

Adel. Oh you invet'rate joker ! What a point! 
A pity 'tis you weren't wedded to 
A joke. 

Sew. Pshaw, he can consolidate them into women. 

•Mary". You really amaze me ! 

Sew. Nay, but 'tis true. 

He chrystalizes imagery, forsooth. 
He'd use legerdemain or dialectic 
Jugglery to transform ether into 
Solid shapes. 

Mary. Now I, myself, am fond of jokes and tales. 

Lin. My dear, thou rally est when perchance 
I'm cornered. I'm of opinion 
Thou wert created of a joke. Ribs are 
Too crook'd and brittle for thy unswerving 
Nature which bends not nor breaks ; but like the 
Heroic pun, when I'm attacked by stronger 
Powers, or nettled, thou parryest for my 
Rescue. Therefore, thou'rt of the refreshing 
Joke most typical — a doctor, lawyer, 
Teacher. 

Sew. How prove you that jokes possess pro- 
fessions '( 
Lawyers I always knew were jokes, but didn't 
Know that jokes were lawyers. 

Adel. My d ear. you are confessing much, to say 
You are an object to cause merriment. 

Lin. Ah, madam, know you that he still is and 



56 THE GREAT 

has been, a target at which the saucy 

Waggery of millions aims. Scarce a round 

Year since he proclaimed his prophecy of 

Conflicts irrepressible. The bluff world 

Has racked sarcasm and laughter; not at the' 

Word, which is fast reaching consummation, 

Bat at the poor man, its author. He must 

Be forced to run the gauntlet, while puffing 

Punsters, poets, pipers, pedants, punch, pound 

And poke, proceeding with firebrand-satirists' 

Couplets j and bruise, spear, harass him throughout 

The grim ordeal * he, writhing with the 

Scorch, they fiercely happy at their baseless 

Wit. But I am glad you have your share; you 

Better can esteem my misery. If 

They poke fun at you, I shan't object ; for 

I do love the people and will not blame 

Them, though they have amidst them a thousand 

Juvenals 

Adel. N"ow, sir unraveler, give us your wisdom ; 
That we may know how playful tongue-warp 1 d wind 
Disguises its aerial nature and 
Is transformed to doctors, lawyers, teachers. 

Lin. Mark. Take first a case of indigestion ; 
A misery harborer; its subject lean, 
Wan and woebegone; — a bleach' d recipient 
Of nightmare. A statue-ruin-Bacchus. 
Suppose I were his doctor, what would I do?' 

Adel. I think you'd drain his system with a 
course 
Of physic. You are systematic-, What 
would he do ? 

Mart. I think your patient would be petted and 
Dosed with anodynes and cordials and given 
Strict injunctions not to leave his room, which 
By your tender care would be replete with 



REBELLION 57 

Rdscs and oilier scented flowers, in such 
Prolusion as to form an aromatic 
Halo round his head. 

Lin. No such thing I'd do ; but I would make 
him 
S jre with laughter ; taxing my genius 
To produce fresh jokes and drollery; and 
Operate upon his rixibles with 
Puns and jolly tales; deny him every 
Aliment except his crust and gruel ; 
And though my shriveling hovered o'er the grave, 
Health would soon buoy him like th' enfranchis'd 
slave. 

Sew. I now believe in the metempsychosis! 
Give us your hand, Asclepias. Ladies, 
A reembodiment of Hypocrates! 
Sound in hygienic lore. 

Mary. My dear, with all your droll facetiousness 
And runnic levity, I see your heart 
Is troubled. 

Lin. Sweet friends, can I be alone ? Another 
time 
I will resume my lecture and discuss 
Tiie consanguinity of jokes and pedagogues. 

Sew. [To ladies.] He's been sad all day with 
some foreboding. 
Let us retire and leave him to his thoughts. 

[Sew., A del. and Mary, exeunt. 

Lin. If to disguise is wrongful, then am I 
Dishonest. Oh, I am tortured with the 
Gashes of my countrymen ! They, on the 
Humid field, like heroes contending for 
Th' insulted flag. Ah, and this moment in 
The lunge of battle! Whilst purple streams do 
Clot and clog the channels of Bull Run ; I, 
Midst luxuries palatial, like the turk, 



58 THE GREAT 

Enjoying what my conscience denies me, 
Partaking what my nature would reject. 
Such is my heart's reciprocation, that 
I seem to feel the slashing sabers and 
Th' impetuous bullet, the pond'rous 
Shot and detonating shell, crashing and 
Plowing through flesh, bone and brain ! But ah, as 
Eallying contemplation taunts me, I lounge 
Idling; placed here to head them, too weak to 
Fend and powerless to bear their mortal pains, 
Studying some driv'ling joke, unsacred, 
Tame, irrelevant to this whirlpool of 
Issues, to blockade maudlin tears, 'tis then 
I feel responsibility and great 

U u worthiness. [/Shouts of citizens. Commotion 

on the grounds in view through the corridors. 

First Cit. The battle ! The battle ! 

Second Cit. What of the battle ? All goes well. 
The last 
Dispatches proclaimed us on the brow of 
Victory. 

Lin. Dispatches are double-tongued. They flat- 
ter. 
Ah, my forebodings have not been misshaped ! 

Third Cit. The town's caught rumors of a hol- 
ocaust ! 
A wholesale sacrifice ! Ten thousand men ! 
Disaster ! Our whole army's butchered, souls 
Unnumbered. The Black-horse-cavalry, an 
Og'rish tribe of Creole giants, with but 
One tooth in each jaw, which, like the snapping- 
Turtle's finishes the set, and beards from 
"Weird visages depending half a yard. 
Fresh hurried from the howling wolf-dens of 
The Mississippi, in drag'nish trappings, 
Came clattering, bellowing down upon 



REBELLION. 59 

♦ 
Our inexperienced regiments, dealing 
Them deadly thrusts. Our bloodshot warriors 
Wavered and shrank back. Ere their captains could 
Effect a rally, a thousand cowardly 
Civilians whom curiosity had drawn 
From Washington and all the points about, 
Struck up, as by preconcert, confusion's 
Scare ; making such fiendish yells and scrambling, 
That quailing, our terrified combattants 
Broke rank and in a mob were cut and sluiced 
Like squabs. The conquerers have snared them in 
For game! 

Messenger. The Buck-tailsl The Buck-tails, our 
choicest hope ! 
The Buck-tail regiment a thousand strong, 
Enlisted from the Alleghenies ; a 
Pick of seven foot giants, inured to work, 
Got tangled in a deep decoy, sly set 'mongst 
doughs and pocket-gulfs of old Bull Run and 
Lassoed, bowie-knifed, bludgeoned by the Black 
Horse cavalry ! To arms ! It is the worst, 
Crudest dead-fall since Hasdrubal's chute. 

[Citizens exeunt passing along the grounds. 

Lin. I saw it, felt it years ago ; dreaded, 
Hoped that heaven would stay the deadly blow 
That Satan raised. 

Re-enter Seward, with ladies. 

Sew. Tidings are most sad, good friend, but you are 
Overtaxed. G-o take some rest. You need it; 
And I 

Lin. No. I must hence. My Country bleeds. It is 
My purpose to multiply our legions; 
For I'm convinced that to repel the force 
Arrayed against us, will consume many 
Armies. I'll summon them. No traitor shall 
Trample the flag my people honor. Adieu. [Exit 



60 THE GREAT 

Scene IV. Idem. A Rumhole. 
Enter several rummies. 
Bob. Heigh, bo, this whisky tastes sharp of 
the tart that makes and takes ! 
Bill. What? 

Bob. Here, Bill, take anot her jumper an' I'll 
tell ye. No, I'd better let ye guess. 

Bill Well, it makes one feel good, as ye see. 
Wasn't that a scientific shuffle? Here's what it 
makes. [Sings and dances. 

Merry ho, ho, 
Tripping the toe, 
Fal de rol, tal de rol, heigh, ho, 
Many's the day 
That I've tippled away 
With merry ho, heel and toe, gay. 
Bob. Hie, Yer git'n boozy, Bill ; so am 1 an' I 
confess it's a shame. 

Bill. If I guess right, I'm sober; if wrong, I'm 

hie, intox 

Bob. Well, 

Bill. Well, it makes merry; and jt takes the 
"do-dads"; but afore this nigger war's over, it'll 
take yer pocket full jes to git yer whistle wet. 
Bob, Yes, but no. 
Bill, Explain yer self. 

Bob, Yes, it'll make merry an' cost money. It's 
a fact; but that isn't all whisky can do. It can 
make drunkards an' take their lives. A hog's too 
[ Enter Cop., puffing, exhausted and drabbled. 
sensible to swill it an' Bill, I'm goin' to take a les- 
son in health from a hog an' swill whisky no more. 
Bill. Robert, hie, We have been friends. We 
are now enemies. Ye coolly insinnivate that I'm 
worse 'n a swine bein' as ye know I'm drnnk. I 
don't thank nuther you nur whisky fur breakin' 



REBELLION. 61 

up our 'quaintance, but I'm goin' to 'spostilate agin' 
bein' called a hog or a black abolitionist. I propose 
to smash yer, hie, snoot, Robert, or somebody "s else 
jes te lay this volcano of fire-water an 1 wrath ! 

Bob. The president has issued a proclamation, 
calling for three hundred thousand more Union vol- 
unteers. I'm one o' them and this is my last spree, 

Bill. Bob, you're crazy! If you're in such a 
hurry to die why don't you go and hang yerself and 
die decent ? D'ye want to blacken yer conscience 
. first, by jinin' that abolitionist rabble ? Can't ye take 
warnin' o' this Bull Run ruin ? 

Cop. Here, landlord, give me a glass best bran- 
dy. Say, youngsters, what did I hear you prating? 

Bill. That's fine comment for a drounded rat. I 
say, ole plug, where did ye git that coat o' paint? 
Ye're as yaller as a California mountain an' I spose 
ye know that's black. Wash the outside an' 't'll 
turn yaller an' so will you. But I'd hate to be the 
one to scrub you down to the real skin color. He'll 
find his gold washin' is more precious in color than 
value — 

Cop. By the fierce grimalkins ! 

Bill. Say fifteen hundred. 

Cop. Wretch, I will stab thee for thy insolence! 
| Bob rushes between them.] 

Bill. The price of a buck negro. 

Cop. Off, let me strike the polecat! 

Bob. No, he's mad with drinks. 

Cop. Shades of the mighty ! 

Have I groped all the distance from Bull Run, 
Halfway with murd'ring rebels at my heels, 
And braved the perils of the first campaign, 
Been blown to shivers by the slicing shells 
Which dropped like ^Etna's cinders on men's toes, 
Been fire-besmirched of powder, snubbed bj friends 



62 THE GREAT 

And made to save the remnant left me of 
Life, scatter'd senses, limbs and rags, by 
Dint of a retreat as slop-grimed as 'twas speedy, 
To be iusulted by such scratch-heads? 

Bill. Shall I kill him ? See ; he's one o' yer 
brave abolitionists, toadying for Abraham, the pa- 
triarch. Here, soap-grease, I guess I'll cut your 
weazand for ye — let out some o' that hurricane. I 
see ye're a'swellin' up an' bilin' over like a scorch- 
ed bubble. 

Bob. William, we have been friends. Don't let 
us become enemies. I know your condition and 
forgive you ; but don^t let me hear any more railing 
on the president 

[Cop. stands gesticulating 

Cop. Gods! I was jaded but a moment since. 
"lis too much! My brain! This indignation 
Burns me; caused by that foul aspersion. Fiend! 
Did you name me abolitionist? Oeough! 
Thing, wert thou but my equal I would mop 
This gin-mill with thee till thou hadst not brawn 
To bawl for succor. 

Bill. Hello! That sounds dernercr at. Hf you 
be, hie, guess I'll not strangle ye. Gi' me yer paw. 

Cop. So ? Have I fall'n among friends ? Are all 
liere, democrats? 

Landlord. Yes, good friend, to be sure. Boys, 
use him well. A gentleman, ha! 

Bill. Ho, you're smutty for a demercrat; but I 
see; it's the effect of bein 1 among them 'malgama- 
tionists. Here, hie, 'come, my treat, all 'round to 
the company. Landlord, give this gentleman a stout 
one. He thinks more of the white man than he 
does of the nigger. Here's luck to the southern 
chivalry 1 Hurrrah for the southern chivalry ! 
Hurrah, hurrah! [All shout and drink, except Bob. 



LL DLL LION. 63 

Hob. "I'm sick and 'shamed that I've so long ar- 
gued and drank for the democracy. A principle 
run mad ! 

Cop. . Were' t not that I belong to higher rank, 
I'd 

Bob. Don't brag of high rank. Men are all on 
a low level in the grog-hole. 

Cop, What, a spy! [To Bill.] Is it safe here ? 

Bill. Pshaw I He's an old friend. Whiskey 
makes him cross. Don't notice him. 

Cop. [Aside.] I'll take new courage, then. [Aloud. 
Friends, I have a 
Magazine within me, of seething hate. 
B, bu, but patience 1 When I think of my 
Great injuries, I'm choked. I am, in halls 
Of Congress, esteemed most eloquent. Now, 
Mad reflection chokes me. I can but rail 
And imprecate. The leering demagogue 
And his . pilf 'ring bloodsuckers! He's wheedled 
Himself to the chief magistracy when 
Conscious of the consequences; and now 
Sits spitting blood contemptuously into 
The very face of scores of millions, too 
Flush' d with selfish policy to smell the 
Blood he spills. Lincoln's a murderer ! 

Bill. Why don't you call 'im suthin' ? Now jest 
hear me name 'im. Take an injin, a nigger, a bab- 
>n, a carrion buzzard, a fool, mad dog, rattlesnake, 
catamount, skunk and a hvena. Chuck 'em all in- 
to one cage. Let 'em eat one another up till there's 
nothin' left. The quintessence of that pizen noth- 
m', biled down fur dog's-bane, is old Abe Lincoln. 

Omnes. Ha ha ha ! [Exit Bob. 

Cop. You have relieved me. Thank you, 
My treat this time. You're ahead. Come. 
Enter Florence, lost sister to Joe. 



64 THE GREAT 

Flor. G-entlemen, I am directed hither with as- 
surance that you are friends of the Confederacy. . 

Cop. Ha, faith ! You are right mam'selle. We 
esteem the Confederacy as we esteem the fair ; and 
we esteem beauty above virtue. Who are you ? 
Some bonny lass upon whom gentlemen execute 
charity? Pardon an ambiguity, miss. 

Flor. Sir, your insinuation is too scurrilous to 
proceed from the lips of a gentleman. 

Cop. Egad! Another bluff, or I'm salt and 
pepper. Madame, most respectfully. What would 
you have us do? 

Flor. I wish letters of introduction to General 
Beauregard. 

Cop. Ha, Beauregard! Position has enlarged 
Him. Two short months ago we were acquaint'. 
I, his adviser. His conversation 
Then, so liquid that it rolled on fussy 
Axles, oiled with obsequious smiles. But ah.! 
I saw him yesterday with Davis, at 
The battle. Success them so inflated 
That they knew me not. I relish not this 
Arrogance ; and question propriety 
In giving aid and comfort to vapid 
Braggarts. But lady, state your object and 
Be sure I'll work you service 

Flor. One side, kind sir. The first accost was r as 
I thought, ungenerous. Let my abrupt 
O'nrusion at your revels cancel ill humors. 

Cop. Thank you, thank you, sweet woman, 
your kindness 
Overflows. 

Flor. I much sympathize with those determin'd 
Heroes ; and since the outbreak, being young 
And full of health and love of wild adventure, 
Have bethought me 'twere no disgraceful task 
To lend my friends assistance, as a, spy. 



REBELLION. 65 

Cop. Ut, tut, tut, lady ! I'm confounded at 
Your daring. You, so young and pretty, a 
Spy ? The Yanks will hang you on a gibbet- 
Fi.or. I take the consequence. Will you aid me? 
Cop. Lady, you put a pungent question. This 
Plight you see me in, deceives my state. 
I'm of the yankee Congress. I have power 
To lend you furtherance and will. Exchange 
Addresses with me. We'll be friends. [She exchan- 
ges cards with him. Noise outside, approwching-.. 
Hark? [Aside.] Conscience surrenders me. My 

legs shall 
Not. Oeough ! The soul rebels against the body. 

[Hides behind counter. 
Re-enter Bob., with officers. 

Bob. Here, Captain, seize the mutinous rabble. 
[Soldiers arrest them. 

Land. Say, villian, your excuse for this. 

Bob. I am no villian, sir. I am a soldier. My 
business is to bag the enemy; but my excuse for 
being here is that you are northern rebels. You 
reviled the President in the teeth of my caution- 
ing — called him a murderer. You are full of trea- 
son and dangerous, cowardly auxiliaries to the Con- 
federacy. The President has ordered the suspen- 
sion of the writ of habeas corpus; and directs that 
all such traitors be immediately arrested and sent to 
Fort Lafayette and other prisons where they can do 
no harm. Where's that bragging old traitor? 

Officer. Out with them, men. Look here miss, 

you had better go away. This is rough business 

for you to witness. [Exeunt omnes 

except Cop., who cautiously emerges. 

Cop. By all the Fates ! Escaped again. Can it 
Re possible I was created to 
Survive this threatening brigandage? Why, my 



66 THE GREAT 

Life is charmed! Hush! I'm yet vulnerable ; but 

My cause is right. Nay, Val, be honest to thyself. 

Thou knowest that thou liest. Thou'rt on the 

Fence, divaricate; yet one foot dangleth 

Lowest toward the South. First, skulked behind a 

Rock and next a counter! It must be said 

Thou'rt fortunate; yet 'tis amazing that' 

Thou escap'st detection. Surely, it was 

Beyond their comprehension that thou couldst 

So belittle thy estate, as to court 

Refuge in such snakish attitudes ! Then 

Thy magnanimity hath saved thee! Not 

Thine, but that th'ingenuous world accrediteth 

Thee. Yal, thou'rt a knave ; a snake with beaut' ous 

Tints and noiseless locomotion and gemmy 

Eyes of fascinating power; sly, gifted, 

Artful, yet indifferent; and fang-jawed; 

Whose hollows secrete a deadly venom. 

Thou'rt not a rattlesnake ; for he doth give 

Some omen of his presence; as 'twere a 

Whizzing quiver of remorse, which strains 

The tendons of a fiend's resolve to such 

Fell tension that his very organism 

With rigidity excessive, trembles; 

Clanks aloud the monster's scales, that innocence ,' 

May take warning. But thou'rt a copperhead ; 

Prone crawling o'er the grass; subtile and still; 

Refusing to betray, e'en by malignant 

Hiss, his nearness, till the doom'd victim feels 

The poison'd tooth and dies. A copperhead ; 

And all of thy coadjutors; hated 

Of the friends thou wouldst assist. 

Sting, then; bite and hide thy creeping nature; 

For if thou lettest the nation know thy heart 

Thou'llt die an outlaw. Woe betide the craven 

Who pronounces sentence which consigns to 



REBELLION. 67 

Banishment and dungeons,: the innocents 
Who dare speak their thoughts ! A reign of terror! 
[Noise without and Cop. alarmed, exit. 
Scene Y. Richmond. A cell in Libby Pris- 
on; Prisoners in tatters and woe. Florence re- 1 
yarding Joe in chains. 

Flor. Ah, I see him, but he knows me not. "Tig 
The same rough man of deeds, whose valor charms 
Me. A mate was never mated. A man 
By fiends unmanned. See how he stoops to breast 
His heavy thongs ! Excused shall be the maiden's 
Heart that's won by manhood's nature-vested 
Title. Though a rough exterior, with 
Age and bony frame and language uncouth. 
With wrinkl'd brow and silver-setting locks, 
Yet many's the soul longs for her Jason 
Who bravely gives his life for liberty. 
Traitors to my country, ye call me spy! 
Well, I will ply a maiden's wiles and use 
The juggler's art and scare these murd'rers, by 
Warping their craven superstitions with 
Apparitions weird. My work shall be, while 
On this espionage, to dress' the wounds 
And calm the agony of suffering 
Yictims of the fell fiend of war.' ' ; 

Enter 1)avis, Winder and Turner. 

Davis. Sir, Jet us dispatch our reconnoissance. 
'Tis a fetid dungeon. The air is mixed , 
With noxious putrefactions; ;an,d the eye 
Meets objects that appall. Bah ! One's stomach 
Nauseates. The brain gets dizzy at the 
Contemplating., You have well executed 
My commands, good General.. The dusty 
Floor well animates with vermin ; the putrid 
Emanations and the wan spectres that 
Haze about the vaults — a foul congeries 



68 THE GREAT 

Of Might! 'Tis good offspring of 3 r our genius.. 
Well done. Here is a purse of gold. I'll hence.. 

WiNDi Thank you, lord President; but you've 
missed the 
Half of their excruciate glum. Allow me 
Most rev'rently, to individualize : 
Here is a man — get up, you bleach' d, 
Attenuated tail of Satan ; else 
By the gods, we'll cudgel every ray of 
Life and light from those old skin-bone ruins! — 
This is a man, gulched in the last quivers of 
Starvation. 

Davis. [Aside.] The oath I took to serve the 
devil, was 
An atrocity ! Friends, let's emit this antrum 
Of effluvia. 

Wind. Nay. noble potentate, tarry awhile; 
And you shall further gloat on sights to charm 
The demons. View yonder group. They have been 
Sullen, refractory and wilful. On 
Them have I devoted special malice. 
Here. Captain, whip them up; let Wirtz assist; 
And if they feign debility, or lag. 
Or cringe, or twist the ponderous gyves which 
Shackle them, why, flay them till they beg. 

Daw [Pointing to Joe.] General, how's this? 
Those northern brags so drained of stock they must 
Needs send to fight our chivalry, such "a 
Cadaverous hoosier? An aged rainbow 
With the colors faded ! [Hunting Joe., bevt 

and emaciated, is dogged forward. 

Omxes. Ha, ha. ha r ha. 

Da v. Sure, there be signs of rain. A nimbus true, 
Whose presence doth betoken dampness; as 
These humid, malaria-infected gusts 
Do testify. Ha, ha; I'm sure 'twill rain; 



REBELLION. 69 

For water thickens on my lids from damps 
And laughter! Ha, ha, ha, ha, a trembling 
Septuagenarian. Bah ! Sent here to 
Measure strength with men! The idea! 

Turn. The ideal Truly, 'tis laughable ; 
But ideas are not oak. Yon gaunt clown well 
Can illustrate it. He's the most dreaded 
Subject in the cells. [ Wirtz and his posse urge the 
prisoners forward. Florence advances to Davis. 

Flor. The genius of charity weeps for the 
Innocent. Canst thou regard their tortures with- 
out shame ? 
The gates of hell seem shoved aside that thou 
May'st gaze and hug this nucleous of sin. 
And thou sav'st them not? Nay, even addest; 
G-loating on this massive wrong, thou cumb'rest 
Worse thy guilt. Have mercy, then, oh, creature 
Graced with power and rescue those perishing 
Men. 

Dav. What, who, whence is this? A spirit or a 
Dream? 

Wirtz. Faster, ye dronish crawfish, or I'll brain 
ye! Here, turnkey, thump that hog-eyed sluggard 
up. He's got a wicked look. 

Joe. Look'ee, ye devil-fish 'o the traitors! Hit 
me, an' ye will! Hit'll be the last time ye'll ever 
hit. {Turnkey strikes him.] Thar, take that." [Strikes 
him down with his manacles.] That ar's the way 
I doom traitors. Off, I say, be war' ! [To Florence. 
Say, gal, ye're right smart uv roughin' it. Wal, yo'd 
better git away, ef yo air made uv meat an' blood, 
fur hit's no use pleadin' ter them treacherous brutee. 
[To others.] Back ! Tetcli me not. Wot I say, I'll 
stick to. 

Turn. Ho, men, seize him ! Take him out and 
hang him, hang him, hang him to the nearest tree! 



70 TEE $J8&t& 

Joe. Stan' back I say tfoar. I r ll' soon sarve ye ; 
the same as that wuthless traitor lyin' thar. What's 
the coward rebel as'll dare meet a union man On e- 
qual terms? Ye haint a sprinklin' 6' human blood 
in ye. Ye yellin' cannibals. Ye sponge^headed cut- 
throats ! An' if I call ye alligators, I dont git down 
halfway to whar ye are;* o'ny the scales what kiv- 
ers ye keeps out the pricks o' conscience an' makes 
ye wusser an' cruelern a brute injin, an yer sneak- 
in' natur's indicative o' the crawlinest part uv an' 
alligator's belly. Ye're hissin' snakes, alius doin' the 
devil's will. Back I say ! I would'nt fight ye on 
terms any more'n I'd fight a woman ; but if ye tetch 
me, ye're wilted corpses instanter. 

Wind. Seize that man, I say and have his neck 
stretched. 

Joe. Eack! thar, and thar, and thar. 

[A guard falls each blow. 

Wind. What ho ! Guards ! 

Enter more guards and officers. 
Sieze that man and have him hanged on the instant. 

[Confusion in which Joe is at last overpowered. 
Exeunt omnes except Davis, Florence and prisoners. 

Davis. Most fearful episode ! My opinions 
Have undergone a metamorphosis. 
He is a frightful character and I 
Confess, fearless as I claim to be, I 
Feel the ague jar of terror. Ho G-uards ! 

Re-enter guards. 
Take up those fallen jailors and straightway 
Proceed to have that fellow hanged. 

[Exeunt guards with the dead men. 

Flor. [Approaching. 1 Sir, 'tis with tears and 
agony of heart, 
That I approach thee on behalf of these 
Poor prisoners. I only ask that thou 



REBELLION. 71 

Wouldst amend that dread decree- of -torture 
Asto grant one li'ttle crust ;,jsome €X)6ling - 
Beverage ; and if thou wouldst hot spare the 
Pains to have their cell cleansed of this sickly 
Mire, pray condescend to give them water ; 
T.\iqfa, gladly they may minister to xheir 
Own comforts. Death were a welcome chapter 
To seal up the book of their existence. 
But oh, to dwindle in slow starvation ! 
Life,, at best, an oblique moonbeam, gleaming 
Obscurely through fate's weeping clouds; but 
Oh, to scatter poisons which infect its 
Haze to greenness; to vitiate their clammy 
Vault-air with blighting miasmata ! tis 
Too much for reflection. What then to be 
Endured ! Oh ! . . . . 

Davis. Away, thou mystic sprite! Thou'rt no 
mortal 
Thou art my conscience. I will repel thee. Go ! 

Flor. Nay, do not repress her gentle tapping. 
Let not thy heart lie cased within its bars. 
Oh, for its own sake, let it yield unto 
Compassion's promptings; for of thy short-liv'd 
G-loatings which do yield a sickly 
Satisfaction, there cometh a bitter end. 

Davis. Genius, 

Avaunt! Wouldst thou allure a magnate of 
My potency by wheedling sophistry? 
Folly, folly, folly. Screech not to me [She vanishes. 
Again. [Aside,] I'm damned ! 

[Noise of fire-arms and shouts without. 
Re-enter Winder and Turner. 

Wind. Your Excellency, he has escaped. 

Davis. How's that? Who? 

Wind. The prisoner, Joe, the Hunter. 

Davis. Ill give a glittering thousand for his 



72 THE GREAT 

Body, dead or alive. Hon- did he 'scape ? 

Turn. He wrenched the iron manacles from his 
Wrists' with a prodigious strength as only 

Giants and madmen wield 

Davis What ! Are his fetters broken ? He's 

at large ? 
Turn. And dashing the brains from some half 

dozen 
Soldiers, scaled all barring obstacles, and 
Fled uninjured through a storm of balls. 

Davis. Bestir the City guards. Blockade all outs. 
Spare no time or force, in his recapture. 
Take the most dang'rous of these prisoners 
And let them, fn Low Moor shackles, welded 
At Vulcan's forge, be, under escort of 
This Wirtz, our modern Torquemada and 
Prince of cruelties, man-wolf and pocket- 
Heart, dragged South to denizen the Black-Holes 
Of sunburnt Anderson ville. [fopraowers.] Lie 

there, ye 
Rotting miscreants of the North ; and mold and 
Bleach and wilt. I'll rest secure in knowing 
Ye're unmanned. 

[Florence re-appears, at whom Davis stares, 
lohile slowly following Winder and Turner out. 
As Florence slowly vanishes, the prisoners set up 
a melancholy cry, white mournful music grows loud- 
er and louder.] [Curtain falh. 



TumELLlOK. 73 



ACT IV. 

Scene I. Washington. A public walk. 
Enter several rebel sympathizers in conversation. 

Bill. Yes, and the draft. 

Harmon. It will glean every man ; rake the 
land clean from ocean to ocean. 

Bill. As true as I hold position, that old hyp- 
ocrite shall never get me into his clutch, so long 
as there's a Canada. 

Harm. Do you imagine what is the sentiment 
of the community, just now? Why, I overheard a 
man saying that sooner than lose his liberty by be- 
ing kidnapped, or drafted, like a convict, into the 
war, to kill, or be killed, by his friends, he would 
enter a conspiracy of assassination. Here he is. 

Thug. Caution, caution! Do you imagine, sir, 
that to stanch the source-fountains of trouble, at 
once, would be a blessing? 

Harm. Confidentially, I think so. Why, man? 
Do me the favor to bare your heart. 

Thug. I've an omen ne'll not disturb you long. 
There's a muggy gust afloat. A murky 
Breeze sniffs up from hell, wafting a crooked 
Meaning; which 'tis not a public function 
To divine. 

Enter Cop. 

Cop. Well, good morning, friends. 

Ah, here^s our unravel'd mystery of 
Histrionic art — can play two games at 
Once. How fare you? What's the news? 

Thug. Domestically fair, socially passable, 
Politically, disastrous. 
He, he, he ; glorious, rather. 



fji mi; mmr 

Cop. And my sympathizing friend, how are you? 

Bill. Oh; I ara racked witii pains. My eyes are 
bleared, my legs are cramped with rheumatism. I 
have an.affection of the spine. In short, I am an 
offering of disease, within and without;. ' What may 
be the hearsay about the draft? 

Thug. [Aside.] 'there's a coward ! 
'Cop. Bad, bad, dismal. The bloodthirsty 
Congress passed it, Lincoln has signed it,, it 
Becomes a law. 

■ Harm. Yes, and he'll need a dozen drafts to aid 
Ilim. The conqu'ring armies of General Lee 
Are pouring invasion into our State. 
.Lee has recrossed the river. 

Thug. Lee crossed the Potomac ? 

Cop. Aye, and herein lies disaster. Lee is 
As boid as rkillful. He is a second 
Hannibal; and what he undertakes, that 
Will he execute. 

Bill. I, I, I'm a little fearful "We've no LTe- 
Clellan to defend us any more. Oh, the North is 
Tinned ! Well, the sooner the quicker. Let them 
com*. 

Cop. Yes, our McClellan's martyred. All is 
Disaster. Bad luck seems incorporate in, 
And forms a constituent of the old 
Dictator's make-up. • Each plan he tries brings 
Swift discomfiture. From Sumpter to the 
Draft laws. Hideous retrospect! Two crazy 
Somersaults at Bull Run, which their dripping 
Beekirgs blend with crimson, gushing from the 
Crashes of consanguine neighbors — the twins 
Of Fredericksburg. And the red stream rolls on, 
Broadened by previous conflux with Ball Mound, 
Seven days, Antietam. until the tepid 
Flood assumes proportions huge and horrid 



REBELLION. 75 

As the swath of cholera; and now, by 
Fresh invasion, bears ogling netherward 
A nation damned! 

Enter Lincoln. 
; Thug. Ah, what a dismal dream 1 

Lin. Friends, are you dreaming? 

Cop. I wish it were a dream. • 

Lin. Dreams are follies of imagination. 
A greeting. I remember you. [ThxjG, sn eering, 
shakes his head. The two sympihizers are won. 

Cop. [Pompously.'] Friends, respectfully; this 
is the President. 

Thug. [Aside.] Royal opportunity ! I might 
strike and 
Consummate this business, now. I'll do it. 
No, the plot; 'twont do; must wait. [Exit Thug. 

Cop. Your frankness makes me bold to say our 
thoughts 
Do not course in one channel. 

Lin. I would that men might always think alike. 
Your bloody river would dry up. 

Cop. But as 'tis, will you have it ever flow? 

Lin. I would arrest its progress had I power. 

Cop. But all things augur ill. What purpose 
you? 

Lin. We propose to stand upon our dignity like 
the boy down in Kentucky, who stubbed his toe 
so severely that he stopped and stood trembling, 
when another boy asked him why he did'nt cry. 
he answered "I'm too big to cry and my toe aches 
so bad I can't laugh". We mean to grin and stick* 

Cop. If I am impudent I beg pardon. 
But tell me if there's aught but mischief in 
That proclamation. 

Lin. The slave shall have his freedom. I pro* 
claim't. 



w mi: ansAT 

Cop. How can it 

Avail, save fo exasperate the South? 

Lin. With charity to all, and With malice 
Toward none, an unswerving march toward 
T he right, we purpose to keep on without 
Respect to sympathies or sehemes, or snares, 
Or overtures with wrong. An upright course 
Alone remains to honor. 

Cop. Peace, peace! It is the cry. Peace at any 
Cost; on any terms; swap of sentiments; 
Change of banners; anything to stanch this 
Flow of blood: _•}/-» 

Lin. Never swap horses while you ford a stream. 
It has gone forth. The bondsman shall be free. 
It may prove even so; and its effect 
L'ke the Pope's bull agiinst the comet. No 
Mortal knows. I govern not events. ; they govern 
Me. The jarring household trembles. Why? Can 
A house against itself divided, stand ? 
How reads the precept? I am convinced that 
With the house ; divided, we are lost — and 
Liberty. . I am but human, therefore, 
Am liable to err.. I would restore 
Tue Union; would. perform the dictates of 
A mind impressed with a keen sense of right 
And, freedom: ...to;;; all men; converting 
The vile dogma that "might makes right", to rigljt 
Makes might; and. through the pathless billows of 
This motto, guide the ship of State. 

Cop. [Aside.] Confound him! Too honest Con- 
descension. 
Sir, your argument is well backed; but 'twill not 
G-ive us peace. 'Twill open broad the blood-gates! 
A wild lay of the winding-sheet ! You quote 
The Counsellor ; but the same said also, 
"Blest are the peace-makers". 



REBELLION 77 

. . Ljn, But shall I cast your pearls before the 
swine ? 

Cop. I'd cede them territory, freedom, all; 
If t could but procure the 'boon of peace 
We crave. 

Lin.' Coneeed the South all claims,' give them 
secession? 

Cop. I would do. anything to hasten peace. 

Lin. Well, then it must be said we disagree. 
And further ; to be candid, think you your 
Heart is right ? A traitor to your country! 
Shame ! Your follies would disintegrate all ties 
Of public strength and end in degrading 
You. Preposterous! 

Cop. State rights, State sovereignty ! Liberty) 
It is this glorious principle which I 
Defend. Those States have sacred rights, which if 
Denied, or ravished, hurl their material 
Consequences, in desolating war, 
Buck upon their dictatorial foe ! 

Lin. I cannot lengthen this discussion. 
Only say the wrong don't fester here; but 
In the blight of bondage. No sovereignty 
On earth has rights to hold its people slaves. 
Your power-disintegrating plans are green of venom.. 
A good day. [Exit Lincoln. 

Cop. I've incurred his ire and I do fe^r that 
I shall be arrested. 

Me-enter Thug. 

Bill. Its dangerous to stay in the country. I'm, 
going to Canada. Hark ! Did you hear that gun ?: 
I tell you it isn't safe. I expect they'll burn all 
the houses and kill everybody they catch. If J 
should be caught, I presume I should be hanged by 
the great toes, head downward. A half million meii 
armed with horrid weapons to the teeth! Oh, I do 



73 THE GREAT 

wish you had convinced him and persuaded him to 
make peace. 

T^ug. Hanged by the toes did 'e say? 

What signifies such hanging? Why they'll hang fii 
fiiin ;b£ iire gamhrels, with ;! a thong. , 
With Kemp, gnarl-knotted in his hair, they'll stretch 
Him horizontal face, suurward; eyelids 
Cropped; eyeballs ashoot; corpus adingle 
Dangle forty feet above a hungry , , 
Ditch dug two by' six. Why, Val, his legs 'twixt 
Two sour apple trees, straddled apart, with . i .:•■'■ 
Twisted cor<c^;jthey'll yank, till the blood oozes i /•■ 
Up .tg f a^^tmg.pitch. He'll flop shrieking, 
A naked, sun-bak'd coward! Why, they'll blow 
Burnt powder frprn a million firelocks in 
His skin; bailg him with mock shrapnel and hand 
Gjgna^gs L a ^evy'llr^,se his shirt for wads ; shrivel 
Him up by pellets and Indian arrow r '■: 

Jlead^ n-^uh '.[< Ilo^^fye^^hgffi} and grin and 
.^ggiiaace m 'I rob be ■• ' 5 ■ '■ ■ •■ : ' :i 

44^W: ^^fe^iTering; quirks-j squeals, squeaks and' 
Squalls ! Die.iike a man ? Ay e v . that's delicious 
Dyjng^ Be martyred to the valiant cause 
©r ca\Wr^ T ^ofeiFtlfeif j po wder-blazes ; 
Don't finish him, the sun and buzzards will. - 

Bill. OanaHi, £ariada? ; Straight for Canada! - 
Thug. W^f blubbered. See that ye buffet safe the 
Floods T of'^l 1 S^int Lawrence. The biggest sharks^ 
That'lumber rouhd'that baby gulf-stream are " 
Yahkee^rind^hfirJvS. "Ydull make a muckle dish 
For twof u ?of they've V bounty oh weak scalps 
And go for e%ery~ timid sucker * . 
Firming npf'^rd- . ilight delicate game to 
Mira^^M^tSfflP T The. lubber has a tooth for 
Bounties and;|30unt^-jumpers ; a hungry 
Throat;' tlilbl set* Me' 'a Tidily hedge, with guns 



REBELLION. 70 

And jav'lins. You'll make a dish of sweetmeats. 
You're a mulish maukin. The South can slough 
You off; and you're not "wanted here ; better 
Be the angle of a' shark. [J.s^e.] See him slide 
Backward, like a crawfish T. [Exit Bill. 

Cop. No woridor P&t J ■ the wretched creature' s 
■ scared. ." - ' "■-'- u ' '- Mr * 1 
Oh when I think oi^thW'ehormoiis.debt 
Accumulating, ; the ; 6arnage and the 
Misery, the devastation; ■■disgrace, 
Confusion and mockery of other 
Nations, the groveling humility 
Andcthe -list of horrors this 'war entails ! 

Thug. } j HVH And you were won 

Completely 1 over-Lfrr that i Me#f)ion, : ; 
Who has no v c^mmo'h sunset and very much 
Resembles &tfif$fu&o&»Wn. ; ; :v/ itiy* gaad ; ni: 
loGSmU: Bofif Say Miai ~ ■ I^had Earless combat 
With his Excen^c^4^*^%t^eaCei 
bd&EBBji ^s^M^^eace^Vaftt; 1 Revenge and its 
Reward! I'm off. G-ood day, I'm.Wu%^^th 
A. .scheme; ; \A^Mf' E^eeltendyT ' } \&c&knt dirmes. 
Re-knier liijrpcji^ mvsing. , 

Lin. TOe'^ur[^ttJ^j^^rj^^' r gJ^njy-- ,-poubts 

and^leaps" - ; Ia haaou? -J 1 mixlil ■ • 3 

Beset my path ; , ; an& i?he tfyor t ns. of sorrow* 
C^siire^ malice, be (i, th ejr 'l^^jpjtfi^r 
. Being, My dar^erf d ^Qwlj-V^jj^f tjn^jajgpdQ* 
This' gloom;!:, 'O^L^jj^w^Jfp^^ti^ft^ . 

..•;, ; » - ." -,-j : {^kf^epzo^.^r^^lf, darkens. 

My heart./ ? T would '^e t en^ J^^ip^^ w^oa 
Of dismal saurians ar^$appi^g r rthro^g^ ,,. ., 
Atmospheres of fog,,-^|^^J^^ingi serpents 
Crawl beneath and. jra4|&''l)$jf* r fa^gs^ gather and 
Dart at good, ' , Armies, of, Joc^s^s, wither . 
Justice. Worms' prey on winrows e?f the slain.. 



£0 WE GREAT 

Toads, centipedes, scorpions throng the ways, 

While sultry dragons flit the moral air 

And vitiate all that's pure. Yirtue seems seized 

With paroxysmal throes and begets fiends, 

Who band in offensive squadrons against 

Liberty. Charity is purblind to 

The monstrousness of evil ; hope, the last 

Resource of my spirit, beaming fainter, 

Enthusiasm flies. And yet, I pause: 

From the far fields of Yieksburg, welcome wave 

The tidings of grand achievements fledging 

Into fact. Heaven blandly smiled in granting 

Us one Grant to freedom's weal; and in that 

Grant, Til fix my faith. 'Tis an expanse of 

Military tact, that flanks and winds and 

Disconcerts a foe so arch as this. In 

Good designs we'll trust and onward toil, no 

Longer lingering in hesitation, 

But steadfast plod our progress through, till blest 

With victory. 

Scene II. The battle ground of Gettysburo. 
Heavy firing. Rebel and Federal soldiers pass across 
the stage, sMrmishing. 
Enter several Sharp-shooters. 

First Sh;arp. Pick the officers Sam. Hit'^s no 
use wastin' gullets on common fellers, while that's 
any uv the big^ shoulder-strappers. This h'yer's a 
rich ken try. Look at, this piece uv sile ;' see me jest 
wring the grease right out on't; hit's that fat. 

Second Shar^, l£is, we'4 a bed a mighty soft 
march out h'yer, ef our, officers hed'nt been so aw- 
ful fear4 uv Kur,tin' somebody. Gals, any 'mount 
on em ; an' (}id ye notice how Wite an' purty they 
be? 

Th£$q MfAHfr. % noticed hit, an' thar's another 



REBELLION. 81 

Ibing I noted, wot is, thet ye don't see among 'em 
any uv that ar coward, copperhead natur ye see in 
the men. They're either full blooded Yank or lull 
blooded Sesesh. Sich gals is gals. They haint no 
skulks. I got a nat'ral animosity agin' them nuth- 
ern copperheads. They're skulkhr varmints b'lorg- 
iu' ter the snake race; but the women's a superior 
article. 

First Sharp. An' cf our gin'rals war nt so con- 
founded purtic'lar, we mought uv every one on us 
a hed a honsome gal an' all the gold an' greenbacks 
we could kerry hum. 

Enter Federal officers ; Gen. Reynolds, on 
horseback, giving orders. 

Second Sharp. Hold on, boys, see. H'yer's 
game fur yer powder. Hideyeuw, right smart be- 
hine yen hedge an' be ready. I'm a goin' to climb 
up, this h'yer tree an' squat in the leaves. Thet 
ar's a gin'ral. He's my game. Boys, pick yer men. 
I take thet feller on the boss. 

Third. Sharp. Yis. I reckon hit costs ye yer life, 
r Second SIiarp. Tbet's nothin'. ' 

Officer. G-eneral, the battle seems focusing 
To the right. The enemy is gath'ring 
In the valley w'th obvious intent 
To storm the circling ridges and allure 
TJs into strategem. 

"... Reynolds. [Surveying with field-glass] I will 
Arrange my whole division, thus : The first. .... 
, r [Report of Sharp-shooters rifle. Reynolds falls. 
Its over with me! 
; Off. Oh, he is killed ! 

[He sinks into the arms of Officer k, 

Reyn. Stand by the flag, soldiers. [Dies, 

Joe steps forward, aims and fires. Sharp-shooter 
falls. Officers bear the Generals body off the field. 



82 THE GREAT 

Cannonading hushed. Curtain falls, but rises, rep- 
resenting the battle of the second day. 
Enter Gen. Meade. Staff following. Flor- 
ence attending the wounded. 
Meade. The armies are coming to a mighty 
Action, To-day will be most memorable. 
We must put forth our utmost energies 
To check the rebels' fierce intention of 
Forcing a position on the heights. 
Enter Bob, as Courier. 
Lob. Gen'ral, the Eebs have driven us from a 
Portion of the ridge. Our men are frantic 
For the onset ; while our corps commander 
Dallies for orders from their head. 

Meade, f Writing ] Here, bear with haste, this 
message to him. My 
Order is : be cool and steadfast. [Exit Bob. 

Enter second courier. 
Second Conn. General, the hero of the line I 
Represent, sends, in great haste for orders. 
The lines are vascillating from the shock 
The enemy hurl against us. 

Enter dispatch bearers. 
Meade. Rush these dispatches to the officers. 
The contest waxes bloody, yet 'twill rest 
Unfinished till to-morrow. Great action 
M ust be made ; great energy and coolness, 
Courage indomitable and careful 
Management of Commands, Bid them deceive. 
Harass, frustrate and plague the enemy. [Exit 

courier.] Officers, this is the culminating 
Struggle of the rebellion. If we do ; ..•'•• . 

Our duty, ere the sun bides his crimson 
Colors in the west, he'll view the proudest 



REBELLION. 83 

Conflict the world e'er witnessed, done. 

'ih'e grandest theme discussed, the vict'ry won. 

[Exeunt on.nes. 

Scene III. Idem. 

Third day. A reeky height. Skirmishing. 

Enter squads of the Buck-tails. Col. Tay- 
lor at their head. The enemy in occupation of the 
height. Din of battle heard, and rebel yell 

Col. Push on brave boys, they slowly yield. 
Our heroism wins the field. 
The duel of artillery, 
The madden' d rush of cavalry, 
The hundred thousand muskets' rattle, 
All the wild tempest of the battle 
Quiver and dally on the poise. 
Your brunt must overbalance, boys. 
Charge once more the blazing height! 
Charge with bayonets, left and right! 
Through minnies' shriek, through deaf'ning yells, 
Through murd'rous stoims of shot and shells, 

Enter Joe with Quash and colored troops. 
Follow your leader! Ah, I'm hurt; 
'Tis but a scratch. On ! Don't desert 

Your post of honor. Ah, a haze 

Steals on my vision. Luckless maze 
To blind me now ! [Sinks. Friends cluster round. 

Goes well the battle? 

Capt. Oh, he is dying. Our noble Colonel! 

Joe. Boys, is yer Cunnel killed? Rush fu'f 'em, 
men, the Rebs is givin' way. We'll git scalpish 
vengeance fur that ar. H'yer, Gray-back; yo the 
crotch-pole as killed the Cunnel? ' 

Sharp-Shooter. Say, yeuw, I'm gin orders fur 
te pick the officers, wot I'm pullen' at right smart; 
feat I'm darned ef I kin make out whe'rr yeuw'm ah 



84 TEE GREAT 

officer ur a sawmill, fur te waste a feller's ammer- 
nition onto. Sa'y, yeuw, what's hit ye call yerself ? 
A ring-tailed roarer, or a rip-snorter? 

Joe. I don't gin'rally wait ter be called, when 
thar's a fight agoin'. I'm a thinkin' whuther ter 
skin yer alive, or hamstring ye like I would arry a 
wild rooter ; but bein' as ye're the sneakin' traitor 
wot shot his betters, like a coward a crawlin' about 
the grass, I've made up my mind fur ter slit yer jug- 
'iar fust. 

Sharp. Wal, I've no purtic'lar objections to a 
game uv hash. 

Joe;. All right ; ye'll 'tarnal quick git fixed out, 
that a' way. [They fight with bowies. ] Charge on 
'em, oom'erds, I'll be thar soon as I immerlate this 
h'yer wolf-eater. Thar, d'ye want any more ? 

Sharp. Oeough ! Ye've stuck me. Hev I come 

all the road from Tex te fine my match with bowies ? 

He, ho, ye've run jt deep ! Bones uv a spook ! Let 

me cuss ye, 'fore I die. [Florence 

approaches the death scene. 

Enter Surgeons. 

Ther's no use fur ye, gal, I'm past medicine. Tell 
'em ter bury me whar I fell. Hit's honorablest; an 1 
keep tham nuthern sugeons away from me. I hed 
a heart wonst, afore thet hell-cat ripped it out uv 
me. H'yer, gal, send this yer hum ter Texas. 
.[ Gives her a package.] Wat'll my own putty pets 
do ? I feel the tow-cord uv my life ontwistin'; go- 
in', go-in' ! Poor darlin' wife an' babies; farewell; 
-an' my good old mother, I bless ye all. H'yer, 
.yank, take my fresh cusses. Devils gnaw ye ! Dev- 
ils gnaw ye ! [Dies. 

Joe. I never made a motion I was'nt sorry furi. 
Fiddle, fiddle! Am I a baby? No time fur sen ta- 
nnin t$. H'ver's no place fur ter onbottleyer brine, 



REBELLION. 85 

gal, go whar I haint been an ye'll find somebody 

half hit. [Aside.] I must quit sight uvthat ar gal. 

She puts me in mind uv my mother. I seed that ar 

same ghost uv a ministrin' angel wonst afore; she 

takes the varmint killin' wrath right out uv me. I 

confess I've a right smart uv a likin' fur her ; but 

'taint the love uv a loveyer. Charge on em, men ! 

[Exeunt Joe and soldiers. 

Enter a Herald. 

Her. Ho, joyful tidings! 

Col. [Rousing.'] What? What's the fortune 
of the day ? Is the 
Field ours ? 

Her. The heights are captured. The enemy is 
Yielding, slow and doggedly. 

Enter Second Herald. 
Second Her. The columns of the foe are bro- 
ken. Whole 
Regiments come forward and surrender. 

[Shouting without. 
Meade. The field that costs us two score thou- 
sand lives, 
Is won. Yict'ry has perched upon our banners. 

[Shouts of victory on all sides. 
Col. Now let me die ! Oh, word of victory ! 
That thrilleth my pulseless nature I Welcome, 
Welcome my death, with victory. [Dies. 

Enter a Messenger. 
Mess. If I should say a hundred thousand slain, 
'Twould sound incredible ; yet num'bring all, 
Disabled, dead, and every way thrown hors 
De combat, on both sides, it could not fall 
Far short. The ears are tortured with the groans 
Of dying warriors; and sadness drapes this 
Yale of victory. The goal, the welcome 



m THE GREAT 

Goal our anxious hope long coveted, lias 
Hove in view. It stands enshrined in the sky; 
Muffled in clouds, like nebulae which spot 
Its disc; and yet, dim as its lustre, 'tis 
A luminary bearing such mellow 
And enchanting influence, that the righteous 
Thrill with an exuberance of joy and 
Shout, hail Liberty ! Thou sweetest boon of 
Life. Welcome, with thy exhilarating 
Smiles and light our swelling bosoms. 
For thee, we light and bleed and die. 

Scene TV. Idem. 
A company of colored soldiers. Quash, as Captain. 
Quash. Say, Jambo, we's jes did some bustin 1 
big shootin' an' guess ole mars'll shet to lickin' us, 
now. Heah, heah. Dis yer's de fall ob de great 
Babylon, de wicked harlot ob de rebelations. [Sings. 
"Don't 3 t ou see de black clouds 
Risin' ober yonder, 
Wliar de massa's ole plantation am? 
Nebber you be frightened — 
Dem is only darkies, 
Come to jinc an' fight for Uncle Sam, 

All in Chorus. 
"Look out dar, now ! 
We's a gwine to shoot ! 
Look out dar — don't you understand? 
Babylon is fallen ! 
Babylon is fallen ! ... , 
And we's a gwine to occupy de lanu. 

"Don't you see de lightning . 

; Flashin' in de canebrake, 
Like as if wc gwine to hab a storm? 
. Iso 1 you is mistaken^— 



REBELLION. 87 

'Tis de darkey's bny'nets, 
An' de buttons on dar uniform. 

Chorus. 

"Way up in de corn-field, 

Whar you hear de tunder, 
Dat is our ole forty pounder gun ; 

When de shells is missin', 

Den we load wid punkins, 
All de same to make de cowards run." 

Chorus. 
Enter Messenger. 
Mess. To all the world proclaim. 

Heaven is propitious! The joyful news 
Of the capitulation of the great 
Strong-hold of Vicksburg, comes on the arrow 
Head of lightning ; official from Gen'ral 
Grant, commanding. 'Tis confirmed ! A city, 
A hundred cannon and a defiant 
Force of thirty thousand veterans ! 

Enter Custer, Commander of Horse. 
Cust. Now, have the jolly chords of freedom 
struck 
A tintinabulation ; and grateful 
Harmony dispels the tones of discord. 
What! In so brief a space, all auspices 
Upturned? That which but now" was doubt and 

gloom 
Changed to cheery brightness? Decrees reversed 
Their meaning? Gruff verdicts of disaster 
Wheeled into triumphs? i! Aye, and, the storm 
Clouds which were wont to pour drenching ton tuts, 
Vanish frorft the sky I The ocean billows 
That io-day, heaved, swelled imd gaped their crater 



£8 THE GREAT 

Jaws, swallowing with devouring glutt'ny 

The noblest votaries of freedom, are, 

Of a sudden, calmed. That was, is not ; that 

Ceased to be expected, comes, copiously. 

For the bright sun of liberty, long dimmed 

By veils of unsuceess, rises in crimson; — 

Tinges of sympathetic agony— 

And as he views the tide of battle turned, 

TJn masks his glories ; and our thankful hearts 

By his resplendent beams afresh illumed, 

Beat joyfully in concert with shouts of 

Hail, mightiest Chieftain ! Heaven hath smiled . 

Propitious, on thy prophetic mandate: 

T.ie great Proclamation ushered to the 

Lowly bondsman ! Thy intrepid nerve, through 

Opposition barred and bolted, gnashing 

Anger, polluting calumnies, blasphemous 

Tnreats of fiends oppugnant, hath triumphed! Two 

Vict' ries ; in. a day! 3 One drives the shafts of . 

Terror home to the heart of treachery 

At the East, the other blots his prospects 

In the West. [Exit. 

Scene V. A 'plantation near Vicksburg... 
Slaves at work in the cotton field. 

First Slave. Say, Smokey, how long'll I be a 
git'n ober dar to weah dat good news am? 

Second Slave. Dat ar 'pends altogedder on cir- 
cumstances, sa,h.; ; If you goes afoot 't'l take about* 
an houah; if you goes on de mule, take 'bout a half 
an houah; but if you goes aboard o' one ob dese yer: 
new-fangle smoke wagons, most deyah now. 

First Slave. Josh, did you note as howdem, 
big Yankee guns is stop firin' ? 

Third Slave. Ya, he. dat's putty talk, wen «b- 
ery body know dat. Look'eah, Quim, dat news am 



REBELLION. 89 

jolly. I's gwine to cut loose out ob Workin' foh de 
boss widout pay. Dis yer slab'ry's a humbug. We's 
free. We's gwine to rank in de fust quality. [Sings. 

"Say darkey, hab you seen my massa 

Wid de muftache on his face ? 
Go 'long de road sometime dis mornin' 

Like he's gwine to leab de place. 
He seen de smoke way up de ribber, 

Whar de Linkum gum boats lay, 
He took his hat an 1 left putty sudden 

An' I specs he's runned away. 

All m Chorus. 

"De Massa run, ha ; ha! 
De darkey stay, ho, ho ! 
It must be now dat de kingdom's comin' 
An' de year ob jubilo, 

"He's six foot one way an' two foot tudder, 

An' he weighs tree hundred poun' 
His coat so big dat he couldn't pay de tailor, 

An' it wont go halfway rounV 
He drills so much dey call 'im Cap'n, 

An' he gets so drefful tanned ,: 
I spec he's a gwine to fool dem yankees 

For dey tink he's a contraband. 

Chorus. 

"Be, darkeys dey '11 get lonesome libin'; 

In de log cabin on de lawn 
Dey move dey 're tings into massa's parlor 

For to keep it while he's gone. 
Bar's wine an ? cider in de kitchen 

An' de". darkeys dey'll hab some, 
F^r I- spec 'twill all be cornfiscated, ' 

When de Linkum sojers, come". 



90 mE GRMT 

act t: 

Scene I. Richmond ; ,. A secret mult of a 
prison. & Enter Qopj d?s janitor.,* 

Cop." Well, done ! 'J liaye/ been wond'rous sue- 

In this roTe of t^.o, gf^e^t a time, 
I've an opinion^ watcni«gj,tHe,jj^avVing 
Motions of this war, the n %f erag^.squabbling 
Surges . liveliest, against he^pnt^pNow, 
Spirits" like mine, hellhound t$.J)e winners, 
Souls which have,, no pKe,f^le;Otion,/]ana, whose 
Joys at tl\e turnblerploWn of .either,, o^o • - , » 
Best %.d ■•yen t in, hidden chii ck le T loy in g 
To coiir^ pleasure out of both wi ecks, must 
Hazard sorrie dan igerqpj i cqr|tig,n«ty ,, .... 
Which show most rnUery fmm dividing 
Lines o^pontest. Ea. ha, ha! , Revenge and 
Curiosity! A right disnutl pair 
Of twin impulses— irvspirin^ one 'bqve 
Danger's terrors, push one into ^§n ; y 
A grim ad venting i&rsge, :: -a^t e^f]e^,e i nt, 
Outwits.;dete#ionj! r , ; ^ : 

Gam es of m ake-believe ; and c^n - craek en n nin g 
Quirks. Ain't 1$ poH^fn^ : $^o^,BuU ,- >■-..' 
Run bomb-bl^^i^ll'l'e/ja) ^raljastf-ali,, j 

Qui-vive* of m*mfo&Ri'X$&8i torfhjs; ■., ' 
Subterranean^e^^tlLe^ass^sj^^r/- ■;.]■:[ :t] 

Whither irb^febe^f^s^|)en:t^^[C^ H&! , ■ ■ ; -,,; 
I've lived sq j#n$& I'jjp ^i^ii^^^r^and 'twere; 

A wonder tI ana --[herei ; ^id ^o^t; ttiy lencrth ; r . ;_- ..>.-( 

And ehpKtiqf^f^ia^'^^-t^^v^ 8 f S;® enniwj 
Paucity of c'ora^aj^ppi^^jffi ,-,- 



REBELLION. &1 

For conscription it means slaughter; aru j the 
Slaughter's common to all men^ these days. Then 
'Tis to Messrs Longevity and Decrepitude 
I oWe\my life p to whom am lindefotecl 
For this situation? iiet's see * td a 
Whjjte man ? There's no such biped leftw IPedals 
There oe for locomotion 1 ; but at 1 heart, 
White men have vanished from the earth. I 
Judge humanity frorif rneh'S jregard of 
Me. But, mum. I'm getting to distrust the 
Silence" of the grave. Well} His time fof 
Their arrival. The plot. The plot;. Boozy * 
Slipped my mind ; oh, yes|— my 1 situation. 
I owe it to the 1 slave, ' Qtiety. Hpyv so ? 
A slave is troubled with a slippery tongue. 
'Twont do to talk your pi aus and plbt^ before 
Him. Some even credit him With miri'd to 7 
To con surmises. ' So mu^dh the* worse for 10 '? 
Him and good for Superannuated : '■' { v " " sV \- '■'- 
Pedagdgiies, green as thb; hill slopes of thbir 
Decadence; and simple as' the dotage ' 'X*^ 
In their limp. I'm royalty's worshiper-^ 
Got up for an occasion^iiftprovise:d *"[ 01 f 
Out of the remnants of a ; publi'c man 1 
Made private 'through A'be Lincoln's ostracism. 
Ha, la! "^ situation g!ptt>y sworn ;j 7 1 j0 "' 
Pledges of" loyalty to the king. Qh, : r ^ . 
How, loyal! I d6 loVe my sovereign" F" ' 

d gd o .; [Enter IT TnjfG, stealtMly^ with W pitMock, 
Honors me with 1 his' precious eon fidenee, 
In trusting his wig-made agCol' teacher 
With this key of hell; Oh, inost generous 
^nlFrioble sovereign^! He v , Kief he; he! ' 
Pay, in Confed'rate scrip. It is my breatd atwi 
But'tfeV'f ' blacli breald, you knbw^4he ft c61or bf 
His temper. So 1*11 thanllbbgevity 



92 THE GREAT 

And decrepitude for life, liberty 
And r the pursuit of happiness. 

Thug. [Aside.] You old villain, 

I much suspect this loyalty you prate.; 
Cop. Ho, ho, 'tis best to be merry 

When you wouldn't be sad. 

Whack fal de.rql. Deny, 

Old rye and sweet sherry 
Are beautiful very 

And make the heart glad. 

I know 
Where the keys to the vintage are kept. 

[Capers while Thug talks. 
Thug. [Aside.] You worthless old dandy; I've 
a mind to 
Carve you. No — poor policy. Hypocrite 
And Turk ! Yet I'll make him serve some lively 
Purpose ere this meeting closes. A song, 
Or dance will give them fresher spirits it* 
Their purpose flag; and then, see ? — -a gentle 
Rupture of the villian's skin with this, will 
Circumvent his babble. [Exit Thug, unnoticed. 

Cop. Aye, a great success! 

Powder, dungeon, draft, banishment, hangdog's 
Halter-r-outdone, for vengeance sake. Hold! Here 
They come, tiptoe! Timid of wine's nightmare. 
Genius meus, thou shalt yet conjure strokes 
Of twisted meaning and cram the itch-fires. 
Of a great crime's superstition with the 
Hyena food of mad infatuation ; 
Since I lbresee their cause is lo;st! And ere 
The fall, the thug must do his deed [Knocking. 

Janitor opens the door. He-enter Thug, with 
Davis, Winder, Breckenridge, Surrat and others* 
Davis. The small hour of time's ominous pointer,! 
At this dark vigil, with this risky task, 



REBELLION 93 

In caverns of an ilk, which never 
Knew a sunbeam, one trembles at the grate of 
liusty hinges; The turfy floor quivers 
Like a scum that films the yawning fissures 
Oi perdition. What!. A festivity! 

[Davis waves the janitor out. 
[To Thug.] Well, thou hast come on my demand 

to make 
A finish of the contract. 

Thug. Touching commissions for security 
And the compensation. . 

Davis. I'll produce commissions for as many 
As thou shalt see fit to enter in thy 
G-ang ; But as to money .... 

Thug. Faugh! Nonsense, sir. Think'st thou 
Assassins go unpaid? 

Davis. As leader of a band that kill the President, 
His Cabinet and Generals, what gold 
Is thy demand? 

Thug. One million, 
• Davis. 'Tis too much. 

Thug; Thou asked'st my demand; I gave it 
Thee. One million, gold. 
; , Davis. I'll say the half of it. 

Thug. I take no fractions. 'Tis not a job 
Which limiteth of division. Suppose that I 
And my accomplices, should halve this work 
Ye order; and murder half these tyrants 
On the list; leaving the other half to 
Wriggle like maggots, into the rotten 
Offal of dead men's power ; and with the 
License following sudden rise, they dart 
A' ruthless, ill-dissembled rage upon 
Thy head! 

Davis. No, no; ('twont do. We mean to have 
them. all > 



Wiped frOffitlie eyries of the garth. We mean 
That at daybreak after the extfrpitig— - 
Their leaders', all defunct— & chaos never 
KnOwn» olUiuiiiah^ gdv^rnmCrits, .shall hover 
PuUelessly ; decked in the,shrouaVof fyorror , 
Indecisionland despair 1 , athwart their 
Wretched ieifcy, Their great metropolis 
Shall gurgle through its rhiHibn aqueducts, 
In lieu ol the now Crystal" waters, 'a. 
Griping hemlock :-■; which tasted, nor old nor 
Young, rich, poor, male, female, white, black, states- 
man. ' 
Philosopher, priest nor physician e'er 
Sparred the subtle hug of his quietus. 
We mean contagion, pestilence,, gunpowder 
Plots, conflagrations, and every scourge of 
The destroying angel shall stalk 
Abroad and drive their stiffening stings into 
The flesh of our defiant adversary, 
In the subversion of their arrogance ; 
The execution of which terrible 
Commission we have reserved for thee. 

Thug. Aye, thy commission would I execute. 
Already I've schooled a dozen daring 
Spirits to the enterprise; and 1 have 
Planted deep the seed of this my plotting, 
To destroy thine enemies. But in the 
Sad contingent of thy parsimony, 
I'll winnow to the winds my darling scheme 
And thou that wouldst a monarch live, canst die 
A slave. 

Davis. Nonsense sir, I'll have't not so. Thou 
canst have 
Whate'er be thy demand. Descend, now, to 
Thy knee, before thy liege, and thou shalt rise 
A knight. Arise, take thy commission as 



REMmmoM m 

A Colonel} and hece are, th%commissions 
For r tlie conspirators t|ipu designated' st -b 
As safe-guards, in case of apprehension; . 
Thug .^jThanks^ ''^^Jjlw^.TOvlWge^feut-whflit'Of 

the reward? . ;■ ■ 

Davis. I grant a Full appropriation of 
Tlie sura required to meet expenses, and ; 
To thee in case thou executest well 
Thy dangerous task, I grant thy million. 

Thug. Grood; yet, most gracious sov'reign, in 
summing . . , 

This so amicable compact, wilt not 
Refuse to yield thy benediction on 
Its swift outcome. 

Davis. [Aside.] The fellow's zeal doth make me 
shudder ! How 
Can I bless this horrid crunching of 
The innocent, by yonder blacken' d wretch? 
Hypocracy, perdition ! Yet 'tis 
Congruous unto repudiation — 
The fundament of my philosophy. 

Thug. [Aside.] See, they recoil ; but I must 
have an oath. 
A plastic superstition doth pervade, 
Which fixeth my intentions. This oath shall 
Be my oracle. [Aloud.] Where is yon turnkey ? 
All. No! 

Thug. He is a funny elf; can dance and sing, 
My lords, this nightly convocation weigh'th 
Upon ye ; whereas the daylight giveth 
Vigor. 'Twas a mischance that we adopted 
Night for this dark business ; for bravado 
Best strutteth like a pavo, in the eye 
Of noon ; and as the eve approacheth — his 
Bombast shadow'd by the light's decline — 
Mark him cower unto his roost of safety I 



90 THE GREAT 

All. Ha! Are we cowards? 
Davis. What, fellow ? Questionest thou our dar- 
ing? . 
Thug. There's no credit due the poor assassin, 

Whose work is done at night. Ho, janitor! 

All, 'Twill never do! 

Thug. Leave just this thing to me. My lords, 
I know 
Your man too Well to think him capable 
Of our betrayal. His tongue shall never 

Re-enter Janitor. 
Blab. Say, my good veteran, bring hither 
Wine, sir, for all this company, thyself 
Included. 

Davis. Do as he bids thee, sirrah. 

Cop. [Aside.] Ah, ha, I know that fellow; just 
from the 
Enemy ! Thug. I'll be bound he knows me, 
Too; but does not recognize me. Zounds! but I 
Must draw close my old disguise for safety. 
Not that I feel surprise. What am I here 
For ? Is't not to coquette with the weasel 
I am hawking and carry off the booty? 
But the fellow has a wicked look and 
Cynic sneer that wither and appall. 

[Brings wine-glasses and is busy. 

Thug. Is thy name Fox ? Here, Foxy, my good 
friend, 
Canst thou dance? I've a partiality to 
D incers. Thou hast a rosy face and mirth 
Dwells in thy twinkle. Come, friends, doff this 
Stateliness. Ho, for a spree on equal 
Footing ! I'll pour the wine. Come, Foxy, drink 
To the king. 

Cop. That will I. So here's prosper thy prospects, 
My sovereign liege! [All are irrepressiblywonty 



REBELLION. 97 

the assassin's management and henceforth allow him. 
his full caprice.] 

Thug. Great! Thou shalt be toast giver. Fox. 
my boy, [Pouring a second bout.^ 

Wine is my bev'rage. Good my lords, apother 
Round! Now, man, what for the generals? -..\ 

Cop. The gen'rals of this nation 1 . Wide con- 
quests, 
Great victories, long lives, fair ladies and 
Immortal names. [Cheers. 

Thug. Well, what now for the lords and states- 
men? [Pours third round. 

Cop. The Lords and Statesmen to his Majesty! 
May they so counsel and administer, 
That from the wreck of conquest, a mighty 
Empire rise, which nursed by aliment of 
My sov'reign's judgment shall bloom and flourish 
Ever. [ Cheers. 

Thug. Fox, thou'rt a genius or a king's fool ; and 
The gist of the one includes the meaning 
Of the other. But what about a dance ? 

Jan. My Liege and Lords, when I was pedagogue 
No doubt my legs were nimble; but old age, 
The same unwelcome thief that stole my power 
To battle for my country, hath stol'n my 
Sprightliness. But good my lords, as I'd not 
Wish to ruffle your desires, will tender 
Just one fraction of the skill I once possessed; 
Less perfect, as the proportion of the 
Laggard sloth, to the agility of the 
Nimble cat. [Dances to music. 

All. Bravo, bravo. A song, a song! 

Davis. Give us a song, old boy, thy wit would 
flurry 
Wizzards. Thou'rt a king's fool indeed. 

We'd have a premonitory song from thee, 



98 THE GREAT 

And let it appropriate to this occasion be. 

Enter Florence, half visible, robed in spectral 

white. She kneels in a sombre part of the room, 

unnoticed by all, except Davis and Cop. 

Cop. Song. 

I rescued her from a frowning grave 

I snatched her cut of its yawning cave; 

When neither the king nor his soldiers brave 

Could aught but to pall at her shriek. 
She stood like a lily, though crimson clad, 
With its petals unfolded, in tears so sad; 
For her warriors, brave warriors, faint, wound- 
ed and dead, 

Lay helpless and cold at her feet. 

She writhed in an agony, agony rare 

Her vesture disheveled, her proud head bare, 

Rude winds swept her tresses of golden hair 

And adversity flaunted and mocked, 
When I, groaning with pity, alar off stood, 
Conceived that to silence the conquering brood, 
Might free this fair lady of sorrowful mood, 

Of the griefs that around her had flocked. 

Thug. Old Fox, thy song is more ominous than 
tangible. Thou art, a prophet and a king's fool ; as 
thy cleverness will testify. Thou art also a witch's 
mate, as thy auguries show. Canst give us a touch 
of witchcraft? [Pours fourth round.'] My lords 
Sure, these are old baronial days returned. 
A wizzard's fox ; [Aside.] rather, a deep dyed spy ! 
Here, Fox, drink me a dainty sentiment ; 
Poor me, the humblest of them all. 

Cop. Adventurous youth, here's that the en- 
terprise, 
So deeply planned, 



REBELLION. 99 

Meet on its £old alluring skies 
No hindering hand. 

Davis. [Rising] What meanest thou, wizzard ? 
Tell me, is not 
This the turnkey ? What's this he seem'th to smell ? 

Cop. Ye call me wizzard. I am ;— a friendly 
Witch's mate, with auguries refined. 

Thug. Drink, my lords. I like his sentiments. 
AT _ {They all drink. 

-Now for an augury. Let us hear the 
Wild, mysterious wisdom of a fortune 
Teller. 

Cop - My lords, 

I'll mix a compound of your several wishes; 

And ye shall quaff it in the toast of wine; 
For if ye do this with the touch of dishes 

And pledge of constancy, [To Thug,] suc- 
cess is thine. 

Thug. Most delightful ! We'll have it so. [Aside. 
The rascal; he has deciphered me! Most 
Likely he's a spy. I shall destroy him. 
Repudiator has got wondrous quiet. 

(Davis is staring at Florence. 
Ah, keep cool. How wiz enjoys it, see! 
Well, I use him to accomplish my designs. 
[Aloud.] I like it, Wizzy ; it suits well. Go on. 

Cop. Now, good my lords, I must demand,. 
With pardon for so bold a stand, 
That ye each write your pressing wish, 

Couched in your fewest cogent words. 
Each one, upon a paper slip, 
I'll close my sight and dream a bit. 
Then, as your slave, interpret it 

With this aruspic darm of birds. 



100 THE GREAT 

Thug. Cheer, e'en in the sham that apeth mer- 
riment ! 
Well done, ray faithful wizzard. What stroke of 
Sorcery hath now possessed thee ? 

Cop. [Holding up his vials.] My Liege, in this 
talismanic compound 
I'm informed of the fortunes, good or bad, 
Of your adventure. 

Thug. What adventure ? What knowest thou 

of an adventure? 
Cop. I speak in allegory, as a liegeman, inspired! 
All. Agreed! [They write and deliver the slips. 
Cop. [Pompously.] 
'Tis the joy of the sorcerer ever to show 
To a cloud covered mind all the truth it may know. 
Breathing soft invocation 
We mix this oblation ; 
Lo, a weird incantation will presently flow ! 

Already conceiveth the matrical wine 

And the embryo forms, as they grow, we divine. 

There's a crone, old and haggard. 

Ha, Thug, girt and daggered, 
Yon gaunt, lank and laggard old tyrant is thine. 

My lords, let us drink the red draught to its leesi. 
^Tis a wish full of vengeance ; lisps hateful decrees. 

Would ye have that wish granted? ' ■. 

Drink the seed ye have planted, 
That your visions enchanted grow fact by degrees. 

[To Thug.] May the mon- 
arch with his blessing, the drug, the weapon and the 
genii of all shrines lend you God speed ! 

Davis. [Giving a purse to the assassin.] And 
this my pledge of constancy and protection and my 
blessing upon thee, and thy undertaking, shall *ever 
be kept most sacred. 



REBELLION. 101 

Thug. Enough, enough, gracious liege, I'm con- 
tent. [Pours fifth round with much ceremo- 
ny. All drink the last bout amidst jubilee. 
Exit Cop, running, and re-enters, staggering. 

All. Gracious God ! 

Davis. [To Thug.'] What hast thou committed ? 

Thug. Nothing at all, my liege, nothing at all ; 
I say nothing; well, 'twas a stingy deed; — 
I have exiled him. 'Twas plain to me the 
Climate here, were too unsteady for an 
Instrument so delicate and I've transferred him 
To a warmer sphere, Hush, no praises, friends, 
A pigmy favor 'twas, I rendered you. 
Know ye 'tis no sin to kill a wizzard! 
It he who kills can waive the furies' spell, 
The penalty is honor. [To Cop.] I know thee, 
I know thee, blatant copperhead! Banished 
For treason from thy native land, in that 
Thou bragged'st secession, played'st the spy and by 
Thy perfidy puttest thy friends to blush. 
Off with that grizzly wig and show thy years, 
Thou menial! [Thug tears off his disguise and the 
Janitor attempts to escape but is prevented. 

Cop. I pray you let me hence ; for I am ill. 

1'g. And thou'it be better soon, worse sooner, but 
Soonest, a quaking mass of fear ; for I 
Have poisoned thee ! Ha, ha, thou withy knave ! 
What, shuddering at the news? Thou'it have to 
Blubber fast thy witchcraft ; and thy rhyming 
Eloquence must wax more voluble, or 
'Twill not all spin out. He, he, he ! 

Cop. Shades of all horrors, I am dying I My 
Vitals feel the grip of the unwelcome 
Monster. Help, help me! What, murderer! What 
Tempted thee to this? Oh, death ! Thou' rt all 
Unwelcome! My voice grows hoarse and husky- 
Soul — hap — less — gnarl — self-re — proach! [Dies. 



-102 THE GREAT 

Scene II. Union camp, before Richmond. 

Enter Quash, at the head of colored squad. 

Quash. Left, right, left, right, left, right, halt! 
Right about, face. File off, outposts, boaf sides ob 
de tent, right an' left. De fust man dat budges a 
foot from de place git fifty ball troo 'is body. 

Colored Picket. Woeah ! dat's mighty tall talk 
to be pwoclaimin' to gemrnen, what's as nigh on to 
git'n dar fweedom as we is. 

Quash. Grant's bwung up a half a million sogers. 
I's commissioned to 'splode de mine gwine un'er de 
city an' blow up Jeff. Davis an' de whole rebel crew. 

Soldier. Ya, dat berifies a passage ob scripture 
wot I heerd a readin' 

Quash. Wot am dat passage ob scripture, nig ? 

Sol. [Scratching his head.] Well, I guess I'd 
'membered dat if you had'nt 'rupted me. 

Quash. Dat makes out dat if we's gwine to hab 
discipline, we's gwine to hab discipline, sati. Stay 
in de ranks, We's officers; we is. 

Corporal. We's- jess boun' to blow 'em up; 
den we'll hab a gran' jollification. We need'nt cut 
stick an' run, any more, nuther ; fob de fweedom's 
comin' to us poor darks. We's all gwine to stay 
an 1 live on our own plantation. [Outburst of joy. 

Quash. Song. : : '— 

We's gwine to kab a 'eidin' battle, 
Quah, yah, it's time ole massa gone away, 
Away, away, 'cross de sea. 
Soon you'll hear de big guns rattle 
Whang! Bang! A nigga's touchin' off de fuse ee 
Bruise de oberseer ee. 



REBELLION. 103 

Omnes, in CnoRUS. 

Away down souf . in Dixie, 
I'll fight foh de right. 
In Dixie's land I'll take my stand, 
An' lib an' die in Dixie's land, 
Away, away, away down souf, in Dixie. 

Quash. 
Come all we darkies, chalk de mark, oh, 
Stan' firm, fur Uncle Sammy's pwoclama- 
Ama-aination make us fwee. 
We's g wine to fight an' do our part oh, 
'Splode, blow de mines an' parapets away, 
Awa}^, away to bally gee. 

Chorus. 

Away down souf, in Dixie, 

We's fwee boys. G-ig-a-b-hoys I 
In Dixie land we take our stand, 
We'll lib an' die in Dixie land, 
Away, away, away down souf, in Dixie. 

Quash. ; 
Who dat marchin' from de Mississippi? 
Who dat comin' from Sabannah city'? Derri is Grant 
An' Sherm' : dat beat de Davis pals. 
Wha de 'Federates wot'll stan' dar batteries ? 
Boom! : Bomb I an 1 tuhder cahnenade to fwee, ' 
Me, darkee an' all de gals I 

Chorus. 

We fights down souf in Dixiey 

Hurrah ! Huzzah ! 
Ah' we's de boys make all dis noise. 
Hal'lujah ! Spree de jubilee I 
Away, away, away down souf in Dixie. 



104 THE GREAT 



Scene III. Richmond. A room in the Capitol. 

Enter Davis and his secretaries. 
First Sec. Your Excellency, these truths can- 
not be 
Waived. I urge the danger, since Sherman comes 
With legions flushed by victories gained at 
Chattanooga, Atlanta, Savannah, 
Charleston .... 

Davis. Stop ! Don't bore me with such augurs! 
All lies 
By Jove ! All Yankee buncombe ! 

Second Sec. What nonsense ! Is truth less truth- 
ful for your 
Repudiation ? 
Davis. [Paces.] Well, grant a part for fact, does't 
follow that 
Nine tenths is else than gasconade 1 Have ye 
Inspired contagious sanction of reports? 
I give no ear to them. I give more thanks 
To mutes than babblers. 

Third Sec Grant's army like a boa is crawling 
Surely and threatens to suffocate us 
In its writhing folds. Give ear to reason. 

Davis. Reason! Out ye driveling sycophants h 
Ye shall feed no more upon my bounties. 
No concessions, I thunder it! I say 
No concessions. Will you heed the baseless 
Innuendo ! [Aside.] Like chilling hailstones they're 
Battering 'gainst my heart. Aye they glomerate 
Upon my shivering soul and melt not. [Aloud. 
Lies all of them, and you the liars. [Aside.] And 
I'm the chief of liars. — What bugbear's that? 
Enter a Messenger. 



REBELLION. 105 

Mess. Is the President by ? I would speak with 
Him. 

Davis. Well, if you've anything- to say. say it. 
Mess. I bring a message, sire from General Lee. 
He further bids me state that 'tis most useless 
To essay a battle. 

Davis. [Tearing it] Go tell the coward I repu- 
diate 
Him as bogus coin. He's flogged the yankees 
Plump an hundred times ; and now, just in the 
Crisis, glory beck'ning at his talent, 
His power falls powerless ; his bright sword rusts. 
Fear unmans him. Go bring his head to me; 
And I'll pay thee for' t. [Exit Mess.] Where are 

my gen'rals, 
Whose heroic deeds have paralyzed the 
World! Oh, Stonewall Jackson, brave, all-con- 

qu'ring 
Hero ! Thy terrors are entombed. Alas ; 
Wer't thou alive, my cushion were a throne, 
My house a palace, and my cap a crown. 
Noise without. He-enter Messenger. 
Mess. The cannons roar terrific. 'Tis affirmed 
The God of battle yields us the victory. 

[Indistinct cannonading lieard. 
'Tis said that Grant in pushing up his troops, 
Fell into snares set by the wary Lee ; 
Tfrat he was cut to pieces and half his 
Army. The finishing the rest is but 
The work of time. 

Davis. Man, thou bring'st refreshment to my tin d 
Soul! Where is he who heralds this report? 
Go bring him. If the news prove true, he shall 
Be knighted. If false, by heav'n my vengeance 
It shall strike the centre of his lying [Exit Mess. 
Heart and cleave'tassunder! What, cannons? 



100 THE GREAT 

Enter Florence, dressed as a spy. 
Canst mumble news, sirrah? 

Flor. A slash of the master's sword. A lake of 
G-ore, ajar of conflict, a wail, and liberty- 
Is ours. [Aside.] 'Tis the liberty thou dreadest, 
Tyrant ! 

Davis. Is the news so good? Have our armies 
conquered? 

Flor. The news could not be better. Our arms are 
Triumphant. [Aside.] Ha, villain, thy tyranny 
Is at an end. [Exit Florence. 

Davis. 'G-o. I am satisfied. Anxious suspense 
Hath gnawed me till the flesh scarce fill'th the gaps 
About my bones. With mental torture I'm 
So emaciate, that the knocking engine 
Of my pulse scarce thobeth its rounds of duty. 
But here's an end of toil. Oh, the future ! 
What a golden prospect! Reclining on 
My throne, in wanton dalliance with my thoughts, 
I'll take a retrospect, I'll re-endure 
These miseries; conjure comparisons 
Of past, present and future. The past, a 
"Fast, tumultuous flood. I, buffeting its 
Lurid waves, almost without a compass, 
In my bark which but possesseth power to 
•Buoy me through the tempest ; the present, that 
Pointeth me to the hav'n of my ambitions; — 
iStill with a grimace, a convulsion and 
A shrug of hateful willingness. Yet, in 
The present I behold the city of 
My palace; whilst the morn of fortune dawn'th, 
All gray and dewy. 'Tis the future! Those 
<Trilded>spires; those sculptured columns, moss-walls; 
Symmetric avenues; the elysium ! 
And yonder golden dome, frowning with kingly 
Majesty, -grand, massive and forbidding! 



REBELLION. 107 

O'er patris manes, vestas shall hold vigil. 
My commons, the jaded slaves! Heading my 
Prytanes I'll feast the bloods at the acropolis. 
A fit receptacle for potentates like me ! 

[Tumult without. Re-enter Florence. 

Flor. Your Excellencey, fugitives, breathless 
Of haste, arrive with tidings of 

Davis. What! Speak, dog! Tidings? What 
tidings? That's an 
Oily phrase for smirky tyro pedants. 
What, does't choke thee ? Perk, thou mock'st me 

now, with 
Hesitation. Speak ! 

Flor. Soldiers and other flying harbingers of. . 

Davis. Stop ! Vict'ry. and I'll knight thee, b it if 
Thou drawl'st 'flying harbingers of overthrow,' 
This sword shall thaw thee, frost-numb'd liar, and 
Send thy immortal essence to seethe in 
Hell ! Ah, I unriddle thy device. Thou 
Grinn'st the cheer thy lying loth dissembleth ! 
Watchful anxieties provoke a petulen.ce 
W r hich keen suspense hath frenzied. 

Flor. Your Excellency, if you'll but hear my 
words — 

Davis. Well, bray, now. bray. I listen. 

Flor. 'Twould seem the Union forces are driving 
All before them. The confederates are flogged. 
A large detachment of the Northern power 
Ts hurrying hither to take possession. 
The battle is enormous, bloody and 
Decisive. [AsMe.] Blanch, quaking wretch, your 

crimes 
Shall yet be punished ! [Exit Florence, followed 
by Davis, sword drawn.'] 

Re-enter Messenger and Soldiers. 



108 THE GREAT 

Davis. Grin, dog! Vile traitor! Canst smile 
and twinkle 
And spurge thy country's doom upon thy lips ? 

Mess. All is lost. Our arms can do no more ! 

Soldiers. Lost, lost, all hopes are gone ! 

First Sec. I warned you of the danger, but 
reckoned 
Not the fall so speedy. 

Second Sec. Our only hopes be in some grace- 
ful art ; 
Some sweet conciliation ; feign'd innocence ; 
Some demure submission. 'Tis the only 
Artifice we can trump to veer us off 
The gibbet. [Aside.] But thou, king! Thou 

hast a 
Cause to pale and tremble and fathom down 
The depths of thy disaster. Little's the 
Pity I bestow, knowing the weight of 
Thy egregious guilt. [Aloud.] The covenant of 
United power must be dissolved by this 
Fierce tempest of defeat ; and it remain'th 
For him who hath a head, to save't as best 
He can. That fiendish oath we mumbled, 
Fudge ! What is it? A meatless nulity. 
Old age had shrivled it, ere this last crush. 
In youth's prime 'twas strong; and proved a giant 
G-houl which forced us into many a grim 
Venture. Now, it culminateth in vast 
Discomfiture. I'm ready to renounce 
It nnd forsake its memory. 

Third Sec. And I ; and curse the day I took it. 

First Sec. And I; for 'twas rot that hath infected 
A round million souls. 

Davis. Dust ! dust ! dust ! 

Enter Mrs. Davis, attended. She embraces him. 

Mrs. Davis. My husband ! 



REBELLION. 109 

Davis. Flight! flight! 
Mrs. Davis. Nay, do not say so. 
Davis. We must fly ; it is my only safety. 
Mrs. Davis. But 'twill be disgraceful. The world 
will look 
Upon us with contempt and we shall be 
The butt of ridicule. Prithee do not 
Crown this great disaster with disgrace. 

Davis. What! Woman, wouldst thou have me 
hanged? Think'st thou 
Of clemency ? As though that coarse enemy 
At whom I have so often aimed the fury 
Of my hatred, would show me tolerance! 
Forsaken ! Sight thick'neth bleak and eyeballs 
Overtask with peering through my courts, to 
Find a friend. Even my bosom friend would 
See me hanged. Ye vampires! Will none of 
You stand forth as volunteers, to guide our 
Royal flight? 

Mrs. Davis. Nearest of friends, 

Thy being possesseth not the tissues 
Which gift the heart of woman, or thy harsh 
Crimination had ne'er found utterance. 
I would not see thee suffer ; and therefore, 
Believing escape impossible, I 
Wished thee not to undertake it. But if 
It best beseem'th thy judgment, I will shame 
These parasites, who like poisoning vines, 

Enter Breckenridge. 
Feed upon the substance of thy bounty 
And now seem ruthlessly deserting thee. 
Shame confound their chivalry! In woman's faith 
And with confidence in Heav'n, my borrowed 
Strength, I undertake the journey; and will 
Share thy fortune, my dejected husband, 
Though the skies be our pavilion, our camp 



110 THE GREAT 

Ground the cypress swamp, our evening hymn, the 
Doleful moan of caymans, our only breeze. 
The fan of bats. Through the dismal forest, 
Echoing with screech of owl and panther, 
O'er rivers dreary, the watery, lair of 
Serpents, on dim trails of rabid monsters 
Which alone track the wild, umbrageous 
Wilderness, outside the haunts of man, our 
Common enemy, would 1 fain guide thee 
Down to the welcoming ocean ; with but 
The angels' smile of innocence for our 
Palladium, over his rolling billows. 

Breck. Lady, thy courage is greater than thy 
Strength. Defeat doth balance 'gainst us; we 
Must fly. So prepare. Yes, accompany 
Thy husband 'Tis a mark of fortitude 
Which maketh thee beloved ; and 'twill tone and 
Vivify the drear thou pictur'st. Yirtue 
Shall thus be made to animate, and thou'lt 
Not stand the full burden of this transit. 
Come, friends, make speedy preparations; for 
Apprehension were the synonym for 
Death ! [Exeunt all hut Davis. 

Davis. Hope, 'tis a squalid mock; its eye is out. 
Oh, metamorphosis! Tears? No! Arid 
Grief's barrenness ; — such grief. Grief lubricate 
Bolleth emotions smoothe, bringing quiescence ; 
J3ut this grief's rusty. It grateth on its 
Bearings. Ah, snap, brain; thou hare-brain 1 In- 
ward 
Whirlwinds disengage thy roofing. Rafters 
And plates are metal; lead, dull, thick! Sight too 
And hearing. Alive, yet buried ! Ere my 
Clay is cold, forgotten. I'll nestle down 
And die. Ah, devils throng my tomb. I dare 
Not die. Ou, were : t welcome ! Shake off thy spell, 



REBELLION. Ill 

incubus ! Thy shadows scatter, ere 
Thou pall'st ray heart to stillness. I dare not 
Die. Contrast? O human genius, thou canst 
Not contrast. Crystal— opaque ; white — black; or- 
der — 

Confusion; Heaven — hell 1 Stale antipodes ! 
Contrast ne'er flourished till it found acme 
In my bosom. It had its birth, its growth, 
Its hell feast, within this half hour. I must 
Let it play ; — its stage, my blasted hopes; Its 
Scenery, ambition's pictured glory; 
Its anthem, fate's ogling veto ; its 
Audience, sneering humanity ; its 
Subject, the glory — the grave of Davis! 
Man clam'ring wild plaudits o'er his debut 
Successful, and framing bright stars from his 
Catastrophe. O man, I curse thee, since 

1 cannot rule thee; and I would fain crush 
Thee and dance upon the turf that mark'th thy 
Burial place ! [Exit. 

Scene IV. A swamp in a forest. Twilight. 

Enter Guide, and negro. 
Guide. Here is a shady tent ground. Clear 
these bones 
Away. Beneath the sullen umbrage of 
This palmetto they'll burrow for the night. 

[They work at clearing the ground.'] 
'Twas hereabouts, poor Sol was murdered 'by 
His master. 'Tis a sad story, as 
Testify these bones; the bleached remains of 
Blood-hounds he slew before lie fell. They say 
His strong arm shattered many a dog. Grasping 
The braying brutes with Sampson's strength, he'd 
whale 



112 THE GREAT 

Them round tree and snag, dashing their brains. 

Well I remember the shocking legend. 

Sol was a faithful slave, but too noble 

To brook that tyrant's lash. Well, here's his skull. 

No wonder folks say the place is haunted ! 

[Howls and shrieks of wild beasts, heard. 
Hark I That's no hoot-owl ; it's a panther's scream ! 
Woo-o-o-hoo ! Soldiers ! A weather beaten 
Huntsman and know these Woods; yet I'm skittish 
As a fawn. What keeps them so ? [Shouts, nearer. 
Enter 'pickets and sharp-shooters. 

First Picket. We got afoul a briar bramble. I 
say, guide, d'ye think we're goin' to anchor h'yer ? 
What bones is these ? 

Guide. The bones of wolves and dogs. I'd not 
fetch them 
Here, but for some special reasons. Night and 
Storm both overtake us. The place is wild 
And miry sinks surround on every side. 
To press on is unsafe. Come, hurry, guards, 
Be lively and pitch your pilgrim tent. 
Make all things ready for their drear advent. 

[Shouting in the distance. 

Omnes. [In answer.] Woo-o-o-hoo! 

[Shouts in return. Exit a guard, who gives 
signals alternately with gradually approaching calls. 

Second Picket. The infarnal tigers won't be apt 
to foller us into sich a swamp, I reckon. 

Sharp-shooter. Don't you believe yerself. It 
aint often as tham fellers sneaks out uv a danger 
an' they sartain wo'nt, when they've got sich game 
as Jeff. Davis in the wind. 

Guide. Are you sure they are on our trail ? 

Sharp-shoot. Nobody's sartain uv that much ; 
hit does'nt stan' ter reason. 

Guide. You've had your eye cocked on squir- 



REBELLION. 113 

rels instead of enemies, to-day, my skeptical friend. 

Picket. Hush, here they come, tired and torn. 
Enter guard of soldiers, followed by Davis 
and lady, her mother and the children. "Officers 
Elsan, Reagan, Lubbuck and Johnson. 

Mrs. Davis. Why have we no fire ? 

Ough ! This is the gloomiest camping ground since 
Our flight. Please, soldiers, will you not make a 
Cheering fire ? 

Sergeant. Certainly, ma'am ; we too, have just 
arrived. 
We got entangled in a mire-beg and 
Bramble- thicket and belated. Men, haste. 
Bring fagots. 

Guide. i>Tay, kindle no fires to-night. 

Mrs. Davts. What say you, guide, no fire? 

Guide. No fires to-night, your grace. 

Mrs. Davis. We shall dissolve in dampness ! 
shrivel with 
Chills in this woe-stricken morass. Morning 
Can never dawn on us alive. I bid 
You give us a blazing fire ! Why, darkness ? 
Horrible 1 How prepare refreshments ? We're 
Sinking, now, of hunger and fatigue. Is 
Your wish that we may starve and perish ? Well, 
You'll gain't with speed. Oh, this loathsome, fenny 
Wilderness ! Paint, hungry, weary unto 
Death? We cannot sleep ; but if we might so 
Far forget our troubles, 'twere only to 
Be roused by shapes, real or unreal, of 
Slimy reptiles, in festoons hanging round, 
And issuing their forked tongues from venomM 
Heads which hedge their coiled lengths in, whilst 

hissing 
Out the deadly puffs between their fangs. Wolves, 
Bears and panthers. ... 



114 THE GREAT 

Guide. Madam, your mind paints sights unlike- 
ly ; but 
There's a picture in my fears forbids the 
Gleam of fire. Aye, a picture whose artist 
Is no trump of wild imagination. 

Davis. Knave, what pratest thou? My under- 1 
standing 
Is confounded at this colloquy. No 
Fire ? The slop which filleth thy cranial 
Cavern if brains one should denominate, 
'T would be a slander of the genus man! 
Sirrah, a fire ! Zounds! But my flesh creep'th like) 
A crab. The thought of roosting on this quag 
In darkness! 

Guide. You took me as your guide; and I 
have striv'n 
To screen you from these dangers, by deed and 
Counsel, as best my judgment could. This my 
Last, was based upon a deep respect for 
You ; also the hidious tone of these 
Doom-warrants that I t >re from trees, while ( 
Coyly blazing on the queachy van. 

f Throws down the papers. 
Sir, you repudiate my services; 
Therefore. I'll begone. Make on your fire and, 
Rue the consequence. You'll have a yankee 
Guard to-morrow. [Exeunt guide and negro* } 

Mrs. Davis. [Taking up the papers.] What is't? 
Some printed paper. It seemeth good to 
Once again see civilization's gentle 
Hand. Reward ! What? Bring a light I do not 
Make it out. [She staggers and swoons, 

Friends restore her while Sergeant reads:, 

Serg. "Reward ! One hundred thousand dol- 
lars will be paid to any person or persons, for the 
capture and delivery to the proper authorities, of 



REBELLION. 115" 

the body of Jefferson Davis, dead or alive! An- 
drew Johnson, Pres't, U. S. A." 

Davis. Hounded, even into this quivering;' 
Morass, by hell-dogs ! Oh, my lov'd lady,. 
Better I had taken thy advice and on 
The scaffold canceled ray political 
Offenses, than pay them in this swamp. "Weep, 
Treasure in reserve I I would not choke thy tears. 
Bak'd as have been their fountains, my tears- da 
Also flow. Oh, that the river of our 
Eyes might waft us quickly to the ocean ! 
Oh, that the bigness of our sorrow might 
Engender wings, mounting us in the air 
And crown our exodus ! 
[Family all nestle together presenting an affecting^scene-, 

Mrs. Davis. Oh, my dear husband, mothers- 
children ! Be 
There no cordial to balm our sorrows ? Not 
E'en a ray of light to gray this murky 
Gloom ! Heaven's twinkling orbs, have thay re- 
fused their 
Mild auxiliaries? Shimmering Cynthia 
Closed her vestibule ? Even the glow-worm 
Hides her little taper and fox-fires gleam 
No more. Oh, might some livid phosphorescence- 
Vouchsafe to warm us with its chilly flame ! 
Cold, damp and drear have been the dews tftat fell 
Round all our former camps, yet till we lost 
Our wan'd escutcheon's talisman — our hope- 
Was then, to now, a walk in bowers 
Iftysian. O diadem, rich in gemmy 
Joys! Thou telescope, that peereth through the 
Haze of man's adversity bringing love's 
Voids to reck'ning; mirroring on speculum 
Joy's smiling views. Hope 1 Exhilarating 
Dream of comfort;; thou, of all passions most 



116 THE GREAT 

Essential in this our weight of gloom; thou, 
Too, forsaking us ? 

DAvis. Hope! 'Tis that traitor has allured us 

here 
And leaving us benighted, joins the mad 
Foll'wer. He'll do his work, my shaking knees 

[A musket report heard. All startled. 
Affirm. Ah! They come. Let me escape. I 
Fly ! Come to your papa, children, and you, 
Dearest, embrace me ere I totter forth. 
Jove will retrench his knitted fury, his 
Vituperating scowls, and calm the storm ; 
When I, the object of his wrath, am gone. 
They're coming. Where's my horse? Quick, quick, 

where did 
I leave him ? [ Volleys of musketry. Davis makes 
an effort to escape from the terd y hut is privented by 
his friends.] 
Mrs. Davis. No, don't go ; it is too late. I 

hear their 
Footsteps. Mercy, mercy! What shall we do? 
Davis. I must not be taken ; here, let me kill 
Myself! [Aside.] I cherish life. [Aloud.] I'm 

pausing for 
Thy sweet counsel. 'Tis a fearful moment! 
I \ have it. I'll don the female attire! 
Be a woman. Will they chase a woman ? 
Capital hit! Aye, give me crinoline. 
Quick, quick, be quick f There ] how's that ? Do 
I seem .[She assists him. 

She enough? Ah, 'tis a most captious point. 
Beautiful. Now, where's my bonnet? There, that 
Adds femininity ; caps the climax. 
Women are guardian angels. Now, ladies, 
If this deception save me, though among 
Men I lose my scepter, among women 



REBELLION, 117 

I shall reign a king. Courage ! Here come the 
Yammering heil-cats! Heavens! My nature 
Quails. I'm dragged to execution. Get me 
My weapons. Aye, ye moles ! What, grinning at 
My pain '{ What but my straits provoke those fli] s 
Of blinking and quaquaversal tricks of 
Nose and month? Tis my distress; my garb : i y 
Attitude! Toads! Ye toadied in rhaps'dy, 
Like gambling flunkies which lose their cast, wjliUe 
Your suckers could leech tie public dugs; and 
Croaked your servile wind-bags on my rise ai-d 
Glory ; now\ ye'd tantalize me with your 
Driv'ling grins ? Ghosts forefend! I'll scrape your 

skulls 
With cleavers! 

Serg. [Aside.] Cleavers! He's changed his 
sex ; and scolds 'bout knives and 
Dishes.. Oh, that she'd get us up one good 
Square meal before she goes; snake's eggs, or frog 
Soup, broil' d lizzard, even a ragout of 
Rattlesnake, or a fried tarantula — ! 
Anything, rather than my scanty culm. 

Davis. What grumblest thou ? Of snakes ? My 
~- lady, I 

Do loathe the plunging into darkness to 
Be mured in gulping solitude. Wild beasts 
Have no respect for sexes, have they? 

Serg. You're out of danger. They are afraid of 
Scarecrows. 

Davis How's that? Villain, I overhear it ; call 
Me a scare-crow ? Out! [Chasing him out. 

Upon my word, I 
Think I'd make a better kitchen girl, or 
Nurse, or milk-maid, or female rag-picker — 
Anything, faith, would I perform with more 
Alacrity, than a retreat across 
This quavering labyrinth of quagmire. 



118 THE GREAT 

My gown, it tangles with my legs and whips 

Like tail of black-snake. Verily, 'twill hang 

Me on some thorn, ere wide I wander. Well, 

I'd better be impaled by nature's spears 

Than man's. wretched man ! Thou fallest in 

Thy dying, on thy sword which gasheth less 

The body than the soul ! I register 

A life's synopsis, then make the final 

Plunge : A birth amidst the lowly, yet of 

Noble stirps. A thorough, but indulged 

Education. A flattered and inflam'd 

Ambition. A brilliant and fortunate 

Career. A Senator, first Consul, King. 

Then, on the zenith shone a glory bright, 

Whose sheen did dazzle the wondering eyes 

Of men. A name that shot its accent o'er 

Hill and valley ; o'er rill and river, lake 

And ocean; familiar on the deep and 

In the household. A name that wrought a sense 

Of sympathy with friends, terror with its 

Foes. There came a cloud ; a storm terriffic. 

The sand foundation of this greatness broke. 

The gilded fabric fell. Fortune dissolved 

To be re-crystalized upon the glaive 

Of enemies. Flight. The wilderness. The 

Fireless tent. Pursuit. Disguise in female 

Habit, and retreat. Hunger and vengeance, 

Twin ogres of distriumph now glut their 

Appetites, and all but mem'ry's gone. Ho, 

Hark! They come. Give me yon bucket. Gentle 

Friends, adieu! 

Enter Joe, with soldiers, who surround the tent. 
[ Joe approaches the man in disguise. 
Joe. Hey, dey, what have we li'yer ? I say, ole 
woman, wich away? 

Davis. [Imitating a woman's voice.'] I'm going 



REBELLION. 119 

to the spring. Don't stop me; I'm getting supper. 

Joe. Say, yeuw, a purty time uv night, fur ter 
fetch water, aint hit? H'yer. . . . 

Mrs. Davis. You are uncivil, sir. Would you 
prevent 
A poor old woman from getting water 
For the evening meal? 

Davis [Trying to wriggle by.] Don't hinder me, 
good sir; I want to go to the spring. 

Joe. I guess I've seed yer afore ! [Lifting the 
frock with bayonet.'] Boots! boots! \Seizing him. 
Baird on yer chin, ole lady. A purty woman! I 
tliort I know'd yer! 

Davis. Stand off 1 Would you insult a woman? 

Joe. That ar's the time her woice grated, like, 
r;gut smart agin' 'er baird. Marm, now jess )emv 
drop hit inter yer boots. 

Davis. [Natural voice.] Keep off from me. Ne- 
ver dare lay hands on me; a man like me! 

Joe. Hey, thar, yo make a mistake agin ; no man 
likes yo, nur womern nuther, arter this ; fur yeu 'm 
a disgrace ter thar petticoats. A man like yo ! A 
womern, yo means ! Haw, haw, haw, haw ! All 
men yeu've disgraced an' brung ter shame an' now 
yowarntter disgrace allwimmern. Haw, haw, ho! 
They'll spit on yo. I've seed yo afore. Haw, haw. 
Oh, my sides! How are yeuw, Jeff? Wal, boys, 
this yer's rich. How are yeuw, Jeff '? Don't ric'lect 
a meetin' uv me right .smart, wonst in the ole Libby 
prison. I reck'n as how yo don't! 

Davis. I supposed, your government too mag- 
nanimous to seize upon a defenselessv woman, with 
her children, in their own camp. 

Mrs. Davis. You had better not lay hands upon 
his excellency; he might hurt somebody. 

J ok. Ho, h'yer .we'ye a defenseless womern with 



120 THE GREAT 

A nine barl'd shootin' iron an 7 a pair o' breeches an' 
boots on. Whar's yer night-cap, granny ? 

Davis. Stand off! Don't put your hand on me. 

Joe. Ye' re easy game, H'yer, feller soldiers, 
h'yer's ole king cotton. Hit takes a king fur te git 
'imself in calico. Times is changin', like ; hit takes 
a king fur ter make a womern, these days. Many 
is the honester womern than 'im, as kin kerry high 
sail without hevin' ter brag of her cotton. [Enter 
Florence, as corporal in the pursuing forces.'] I 
say, sogers, I'm not in need uv any help; but ye 
know thar's a right smart o' bounty on that ar pos- 
sum an' ye must all pitch in fur ter arn yer shar uv 
hit. Yo see, the scalp uv king cotton, wich is the 
scalp uv a female cotton-bale, wich is the king roost- 
er over all these h'yer male an' female runaways, is 
quoted on Uncle Sam's bulletin, at a hundred thou- 
and uv money; more 'n I'll want ter use in the tail- 
ins uv my life. So, wade in, boys, ivery skin on ye 
an' arn yer shars. [They bind him. 

Davis. Be off ! I shall protest against this usage. 

Let me loose ! I protest against this arrest. I call 

you, my soldiers and friends, to help me ! Help ! 

Help ! [Soldiers capture and 

bind all males of the Confederate party. 

Joe. I 'spose ef I war a mind ter do that much, 
an' wanted ter take adwantage uv my power, like 
yo did your'n a cudgelin' an' a doggin' me, when I 
war in Libby prison, I mought have yo a danglin' te 
yen tree in a jerk o' no time. 

Davis. I know you, sir. I expect no mercy. 
The only mercy I do crave is, that 
My death be gentle. Do not torture me. 
I plead not to be starved or left to dread 
Neglect in dungeon. Give me a mild and 
Quiet death, and soon ; for my reverses 



REBELLION. 121 

And great tortures have unstrung me and my 
Nature has fallen into a syncope. 
I am prepared to die. 

Joe. Wal, I've got no notion uv killin' yo; as I 
mought ; but yer humiliation tetches me an' melts 
my ferocity. Besides, ole Abe wuz kind uv magnan- 
imous like, an' tender hearted, He would 'nt hurt. 
a har on yer head ; an' him bein' a friend uv mine, I 
reck'n I'll jess chuck yo inter Fortress Monro ontil 
this yer squabble for the darkies' liberty's good an' 
settled an' then we'll all vote fur te turn yo out ter 
grass an' be a good christian by a lesson yo larned. 

Flor. My brother, you know me not, though I 
have 
Been your anxious, watching sister, through all 
These dark years of war; and worked my way, as 
Female nurse attending to the wounded 
And the suffering, as bearer of mails 
And of dispatches ; even have I risked 
My tiny life, performing desperate acts 
Of cunning, as a spy, that I might meet 
And share my pains with you. You represent 
The rough and growing life of the domain 
Of higher freedom ; and I, its captious 
Youth. Do you remember me? We're of a 
Common parentage, though torn asunder 
At my babyhood, by the unkind feuds 
Which rested on the partage of the old, 
Paternal home, now grown most opulent. 
Fate wrested us apart; I, to be dolled 
And flounced in finery and sent to school, 
You to range the wild wilderness, we knew 
Not where. Do you remember Florence, Joe ? 

Joe. Wal, now, I reckoned there wuz somethin' 
a follerin' uv me round what put me in mind o' my 
mother. Sis, by the great grizzlies ! Give us yer 



122 THE GREAT 

leetle pat, my own purty sister. Yo've got a heart 
in yo wat's too noble fur ter let yo stay thar, on a 
nigger plantashin an' see yer own mother's overseer 
pound an' drive an' sell honest folks kase they hap- 
pen ter be poor an' black or brindle. I've fit fur an' 
got a right smart uv a cage wich wants no thin' but 
a bird ; ye're invited fur te go hum with me. I've 
chased 'amost ivery sort uv game, I hev, atween 
the Virginny coast an' the Rocky mountains ; an' 
I 'low, I've seed some pesky queezin' tussles, in my 
day, an' the last varmint bagged war Jeff. Davis. 

Flor. And that ends this bloody, cruel war. It 
has put an end to this slavery we both abhor. Yes, 
brother, I will never leave you. 

Joe. G-ood ! Come, men, pick up the traps. We 
must git out an' sleep in the clearin'. Hit's too pi : 
ze'n h'yer, fur people wearin' wimmern's clothes. I 
cal'late fur te take as good keer uv these poor, shiv- 
erin' wimmern as wot I'd take uv my own mother. 
Now, pet, yo rogue, yo kin git clar uv tham galant- 
in' corp'ral's duds an' we'll hum an' be happy. Ma- 
ny a brave one's bit the dust, but our ken try's free. 

Exeunt omnes ; prisoners marching under guard 



Scene IY. Ford's theatre, Washington. 

A troup of actors, performing a comedy. 
Enter the Lincoln family and friends, between scenes 

Friend. It was most properly devised. 

Lin. Yes, 'tis a pleasant recreation, which, 
I find, untangles many a snarl -of 
The confusions into which -my mind is 
Thrown, on questions <of the state. 'Of comic 
And farcical performance, I am fond. 



REBELLION. 123 

[They advance and take seats in box. Act progressing. 
Enter Thug, who impudently surveys Lincoln, Hi en 
walks out, muttering to himself: 

Thug. [Aside.] Ah, here's a chance ! My impa- 
tience at this 
Dally well nigh runs to frenzy. But the 
Auspicious hour has come, for tyrants to 
Rue the assassin's stroke. Darkly ! The steel ? 
No. Time were engulfed and observation 
Challenged, in effort of the draw 
And plunge of knife or bludgeon — precludes one 
Trick on risk's desperate gambling table, 
Chancing to an escape; — might swash my own 
Dest'ny over to this hog-eyed rabble 
Who should turn the ordeal booked in fate's 
Gamut, against a sweet exit. No, no ! 
This plot's too deep. Ah, the tug of this blood 
Letting bears a tension on the strings of 
Courage! Puts brain and brawn awhizz, cyclone 
Like ! But there's comfort ; for the after iawns 
The more god-like in honor and reward. 
No. 'Tis the dispatch of judgment, to risk 
The barking fire-arm's detonating shock, 
Which paralyzes thought; then force escape, 
Amid the lull of terror. [Returns and fires. Lin- 
coln sinks and is caught up by friends, whilst as- 
assassin escapes, shouting u sic semper, tyrannise 

At same moment, on another part of the stage, 
there is portrayed, in tablaux, a scene of the Secreta- 
ries'' attempted assassination by a band of murderers. 

Mary. What has yonder fugitive shadow of 
Erebus committed? 

Omnes. Assassin ! Assassin ! A murderer 
Has shot the president! 

Mary. Oh, cruel, cruel! What has the creature 
Done ? Killed my best friend ? Oh, he is gone and 



124 THE GREAT 

I'm bereft of all was lovely. Yet I 

Cannot have it. Impossible ! But now, 

He was alive, glowing with animate 

Strength. I do not credit this broad breach that 

Yawns 'twixt now and now, It mocks, it trifles 

With, it blasphemes, eternity! Wake! Hush! 

My answer is my echo. Hateful face, 

Why was't I too, were not a target to 

Th' assassin's eye ? Oh, the green iniquity 

Of partial villains! Return, awkward 

Haggler and re-hash thy crime! 

Friend. Dear lady, do not weep. The tiger shall 
Be caught; for on the vortex of his role, 
A. half the world's agog and the histrion 
Shall rehearse it to his cursing minions, 
In holes of the infernal, as the king 
Of demons! 

Mary. Oh, bitter, bitter cup! My life is nipped 
Of all the joys which Heav'n had promised. 
Long had we buffeted the havoc of 
Adversity and to>sed 'midst breakers, on 
Its madcap foam, together. Yet spite the 
Waves of passion, together We outrode 
The awful jar; — calmed its roar to silence. 
Even had we begun to talk of sweet 
Repose, beyond the glare of public eye 
Back in the humble home-dell of our youth. 
Repose, next to bis Country and his Grod 
Was the ideal of his meditations. 
He longingly did prospect on its joys 
In life's decline, at home, amidst our lov'd 
Ones. Blessed thought ! Alas! I trifle with 
Realities. [Lights slowly fade out] Oh, the dread: 

anguish of 
My blighted heart ! All nature darkens. I 
Must go with him. Mate, art not thou trifling 



REBELLION. 125 

With reality? Awake! 'Tis I. Wilt 
Never listen more ? [She embraces him, weeping. 
Friend. Lady, thy grief's unmeasured; and 
thy tears 
Do scald, which course profusely the channels 
Of thy years. The blow that smote him, lady, 
Is the blow the dying monster slav'ry, 
That perished at his hand, raised and darted 
With a spasm, at his conqueror. Frothing, 
Maddened, convulsed, he rallying, sprang, as 
Start'th a wounded lion in his last, mad 
Paroxysm, when flesh and spirit sever. 
It shocketh, that good and bad should perish 
At a breath and with thee, all the world shall 
Mourn. But he hath left a name, which, since the 
Molten elements from confusion wove 
Distinguishable forms; since man, in 
Triumph hath swayed distorted chaos ; since 
Nations rose and fell and giant mind framed 
■ Governments to check ungovern'd passions ; 
Since language hath lisped tradition or with 
Pen made periods historic, hath no 
Name out-gloried — a name which hath out-marched 
Humanity ; fathered new conceptions 
Of the possible; brandished the damask 
Sword of loyalty to thought, liberty, 
Progress ; and clove the iniquity of 
Property in man which bellowing strove 
To smite all justice dead. A name that hath 
Set freedom free and rolled off its hugest 
Obstacle forever. A name which, though 
Its clay embodiment hath fall'n, shall blur 
The diamond's glitter ; nor tarnish till in 
Heavm all goodness blendeth. See, now! Behold! 
The beams of his irradiate name ! As 
'Twere in yonder apotheosis portrayed — 



12G THE GREAT 

The rainbow twining round the sun in an 
Embrace of raptures ! 

Play closes, with a transfiguration scene, embracing 

tablet?/ x ; also a magnificent stereopticon view of 

a panoramic ascension or apotheosis, representing 

Lincoln in the arms of Washington. 

Finis. 



?v t?T 



5f^6S 






